The Zaraki Chronicles
by SilverWings211
Summary: 100 years after the Winter War, Ichigo Kurosaki's a Captain, and the Zaraki district is as dangerous as ever. Izumi Kihara finds herself in Zaraki, and makes it into the Academy with her adopted sister Naomi. Meanwhile, familiar faces and foes reappear.
1. Chapter 1: Death by Train

Author's Note: I DO NOT own Bleach

* * *

"See you tomorrow!" Izumi called back to her friends as she left them at the gates.

At eighteen years old, she was only in her first year of university and, true to her father's wishes, studying Law and Economics.

As she boarded the quarter to six train, she was relieved to find an empty seat near the window. She pulled out her iPod and listened to that as more and more people got on and finally made its way out of the station.

At quarter past, Izumi was five minutes away from home. She got to her feet, thinking she should wait by the door, and was halfway along the aisle when a huge lurch threw her off her feet.

As she fell, she knew that she had been caught in a huge accident.

Now she'd never see her friends again.

*

Izumi struggled to sit up –for some reason, it was hard to breathe. What was more miraculous was the fact that she was actually still alive. She looked around –everywhere, dead bodies were sprawled on the ground. Why was she the only one to have survived?

She suddenly noticed the chain hanging from her chest, severed at one end.

Now she was freaked –what the hell was this?

Before she could think any more clearly, there was an awful blood-curdling roar that seemed to vibrate through every bone in her body.

For some reason, she had heard that cry before –in the school yard, only a few hours ago, it had echoed across the rooftop. The strangest thing had been that none of the others had been able to hear it. And it had filled her with fear then.

Something told her that she should run, but she couldn't. It was if she was paralyzed by her fear.

_Something_ huge was coming. Then it leapt onto the remains of the overturned carriage and looked down at her.

It was huge, looking like a caterpillar or centipede. As it reared up, she saw that there was a hole in its chest, and she could see right through to the sky behind it. And it's face was a white skull-like mask.

Somehow, she knew that this was the thing she had heard howling.

"Finally!" the thing screeched. Izumi started –she hadn't been expecting it to be able to talk. "It looks as though I found a fresh soul! And you're a tasty-looking one as well."

One of its legs shot out like an extension and wrapped itself tightly around Izumi, who screamed as she was lifted into the air.

The thing opened its mouth, intending to swallow her whole.

A sword swung through the air in a flash of steel, severing the arm that held Izumi. As the creature screamed and Izumi fell, a man in a black kimono caught her. He put her on the ground before turning to face the monster.

"Just stay down and you'll be alright, girl," he ordered.

"Filthy Soul Reaper, how dare you interrupt my meal?" the thing screamed. "You'll pay for that one!"

"You won't harm anyone ever again, Hollow," the man said and raised his sword.

"Purify, Awaihime (1)."

The sword emitted a white light as it changed shape, into a two-pronged weapon rather than the katana it had been before. As the man swung it through the air, it sliced the monster –Hollow, the man had called it. With one last roar, the thing vanished.

The man turned to the girl he had protected. Now that the threat was eliminated, he could perform a Konso(2) on the girl and send her spirit to the Soul Society. He looked at the train wreck –what an awful way to die.

"Are you alright?" he asked. "I promise you won't have to worry about Hollows like that one ever again."

"Who are you? What was that thing? And what the hell's with this chain?" she asked, giving it another tug.

"I am a Soul Repaer, Kokichiro Takezoe, 7th Seat of Squad 10(3)," he replied. "I was assigned to watch this area and protect it from Hollows, like the one just now. Hollows are lost souls, have lost their hearts and reason, and attack both the living and the dead.

"I don't know exactly how to tell you this, but that chain means you're now in soul form, severed from your body. I'm afraid it means you're dead."

He knelt down and pulled out his sword.

"What are you going to do?" Izumi asked.

"Don't be afraid," Takezoe said. "This is called the Konso. It will allow your soul to pass onto the Soul Society. There you will know peace, and you'll never be hungry again."

With that, he lightly tapped her forehead with the hilt of his sword.

Izumi was surrounded by a circle of light and slipped through…

* * *

(1) Awaihime is supposed to mean 'princess of light.' I combined awai (Light) with hime (Princess).

(2) Also called a Soul Burial.

(3) He really is! I checked on Bleach Wiki. He's not a big player in the anime, just a couple of mentions.


	2. Chapter 2: Death in the Hideout

Author's Note:

(1) I DO NOT own Bleach

(2) I'm new to this, so PLZ review!!

* * *

The Rukon District surrounding the Seiretei is divided into 320 districts; each of the four compass points has eighty districts to each. In each, District 1 has the highest standard of living and 80 is the poorest and roughest area.

The eightieth District of North Rukon is known as Zaraki. It is the roughest area, and no place for the weak. Most of the adults are either murderers or thieves, and the children are at the mercy of a select few, whose mercy can get them killed. If the kids don't toughen up or move away, they die.

It is very bad luck for a new soul to land there.

*

Izumi landed with a thump.

She was in what looked like a rundown shack area.

She wasn't dressed in the clothes she had been wearing in the crash –she was in a slightly grubby light blue yukata(1) that seemed to be made out of cotton, with an red obi sash around her middle, tied at the back in a bow. She was wearing straw zori(2)on her feet.

Was this really the Soul Society? From what Takezoe had said, she had been expecting something a little more –well, spectacular. But this place was a dump.

People sheltered in huts or crouched in corners. The streets were practically empty. What was going on here?

She saw a group of ten people up ahead, and she started forward.

Suddenly a hand wrapped itself around her mouth and pulled her backwards into one of the shacks.

"Are you crazy?" a voice behind her asked. "You can't just approach Tsuji's gang like that. They'd kill you on the spot."

The hand was removed, and she looked around to see a young man of about maybe twenty behind her. And about fourteen pairs of eyes watched her from the shadows.

"I am Hibiki Torii," he said.

"Izumi Kihara," she replied in response (3).

"You've only just arrived from the world of the living, haven't you?" Hibiki asked. "It's really bad luck that you ended up here."

"Where is here?" Izumi asked.

"This is North Rukon, Area 80, known as Zaraki," Hibiki replied. "It's one of the roughest areas to live in."

"Hey, Torii!" called a voice from outside. "Are you in there?"

Hibiki gestured for Izumi to conceal herself with the other children in the room. Three scuffled up to give her room to slide into the back of the bed on which five of them were perching.

"Yes," Hibiki called back. Watching from her position, Izumi saw the gang push their way into the house. The children cowered away, some pressing up against the walls.

"So have you got the money I asked for?" one of the men asked Torii. From the way the others stood around, that man had to be Tsuji. He was thickset, had a knife twirling in his fingers and looked extremely mean.

"I just need one more day," Hibiki said, his voice pleading. He was standing between Tsuji and the children, as though trying to shield them from him.

"You need one more day, huh?" Tsuji repeated; his tone was low and full of menace. "Too bad for you –you don't have another minute."

He slit Hibiki's throat.

It was done so swiftly and effortlessly. Izumi's brain couldn't process what had happened, even as she watched Hibiki's body slump to the floor.

"Tear this place down," Tsuji ordered his men as the children screamed, sobbed and sprinted for the door. Izumi raced with the children.

The men let her go with the others; the children were of no significance to them. They started to ransack the hut.

The children flocked around her as they travelled: she was the oldest and seemed to automatically fill the void left by Hibiki. At last they reached the border into North Rukon District Area 78. The quality of living wouldn't be much better, but at least Tsuji wouldn't be a threat to them again.

Izumi stopped at the border. Behind her lurked pain, death and Tsuji. Ahead of her was uncertainity.

She had made up her mind –until she avenged Hibiki Torii, she would never be able to rest or forgive herself for leaving Zaraki.

As dangerous as the path she was taking was, she felt she had no choice.

One of the younger girls looked back.

"Aren't you coming?" she asked.

"No," Izumi said. "There's something I have to do first."

She took off, running back the way she had come.

* * *

(1) Traditional Japanese summer garment

(2) Sandals

(3) In Japan, it is traditionally polite to introduce yourself first if you want to know someone's name.


	3. Chapter 3: Training to Kill

Author's Note:

(1) I DO NOt own Bleach

(2) You know the drill -plz review!

* * *

When she got back to the shack, it had been totally trashed.

She slipped inside, clambered over the broken furniture, and knelt beside Hibiki's body. There was a dagger and sheath around his waist. Obviously Tsuji and his gang hadn't had time to take his personal possessions.

She unbuckled it and secured it around her waist, below the obi. She wished she could, but she was not strong enough to carry his body away from here. She looked around and saw a small hearth, embers still crackling. She tended the fire for a little, until a flame licked its way into existence.

Then she used the small fire and scattered it. The shack caught even as she escaped outside. She turned and looked at her handiwork. It wasn't much of a pyre, but it was the closest she could give him to a proper burial.

Pulling the dagger out, she swore there and then –this dagger would one day finish Tsuji. Theat way, it really would be payback for him then.

*

Over the next few weeks, she travelled Zaraki, avoiding Tsuji's gang. She learnt how to fight hand-to-hand, and gained invaluable experience by fighting champions of the villages and hamlets outside Tsuji's sphere of power. By building up her own reputation, she would led Tsuji to challenge her to determine supremacy.

She found a discarded sword, dull and blunt, but there was a good-hearted blacksmith who sharpened her blade and made a sheath for it.

Even here, in the very heart of chaos and evil, there were kind souls.

Izumi found a hill with a ridge that overlooked a small hamlet. It was isolated and not many people came here –the perfect training ground.

As a full moon crept into the sky, Izumi watched it. She was hardened by combat, and her eyes were lit in a furious blaze of determination. It was as though a totally different person was standing there.

"Hibiki, I hope you can hear me," she said, eyes on the stars. "I swear your death won't go unavenged. And from now on, I will protect the innocent from evil. And I will stop Tsuji once and for all."

*

Tsuji was the toughest of the tough –he had made his living and reputation by killing and threatening, and no one should stand in his way. For years, he had pushed himself to the limit.

Although it was an unofficial title, he was the Hebi(1) of Zaraki.

His men followed him either because they were afraid of what might happen to them if they didn't and wanted power, or because they were thugs who couldn't get power alone.

Tsuji had destroyed the shack, had had his men take every good they could find. They had come back to take the dagger from that loser's belt –Tsuji had had his eye on that for a long time.

Right now he was in a very foul mood. The shack had been burnt to the ground and, since they had been unable to find it, the dagger was destroyed. None of the neighbours stepped forward to admit to it –they claimed they hadn't seen who took it.

Obviously there was a pillager out there who hadn't learnt their place yet.

Well, sooner or later, he would catch them and take his prize along with their life.

*

Izumi knew she needed to undergo even further training before she could hope to take on Tsuji. The hill where she was camping out was secluded –no one would pick up on her presence there unless she wanted them to.

She had practiced karate when she had been younger –and alive –and she had some experience of swordplay thanks to kendo.

Despite taking on champions, she knew she was still lacking experience. And not one of her previous fights, even those against champions, had been to the death. And she had been defeated by several.

She didn't even know if she had it in her to fight to the death, even if it was to defend someone's honour.

Laying aside her sword, she closed her eyes. It was mediation –she'd done it a hundred times before.

*

There had been a time when she had thought her training and skill had entitled her to fight, even when against an opponent with little or no experience. She had trained in karate, and used it on anyone who so much as looked at her in a way she disliked.

She had been a problem child then –her sensei had been the only one able to keep her in line. He had never showed outright anger, even when she had beaten a child years younger than she was. No, he had sounded so disappointed and sad that she had wished he had shouted.

'_Hatred leaves the world hating,' _he had told her. _'Power isn't there to be used so recklessly. Just what were you fighting for?'_

That had forced her to take a long hard look at herself and admit that her sensei was right –fighting for the sake of fighting was wrong.

So when a group of her victims had banded together, she hadn't put up a fight –she had felt as though she deserved every punch, kick and scratch, no matter how serious the wound was.

Since then, she had held back, kept herself in check and kept her head down.

*

Now that she was dead, did she have the right to break the restrictions she had put upon herself? Could she even raise a sword in mortal combat? She knew Tsuji wouldn't hesitate.

For over an hour, she sat in silent contemplation.

Hibiki Torii –the name kept repeating in her head, his murder played back in slow motion over and over again.

If the death of a friend was not a justification for fighting, she had no idea what was. Even though they had barely known each other, he had been kind, shielding innocents. And a vicious man had ended his life in a blurred flash of steel.

She had a reason to fight, but what about the resolve? Was she truly ready to put everything, including her life, on the line?

Izumi knew she had sworn to Hibiki's memory to avenge his death and protect the innocent, but would he want her to risk her life for that goal?

* * *

(1) Snake


	4. Chapter 4: A Rise in Power

I DO NOT own Bleach

I don't exactly know why I brought Byakura and Ichigo in this early –apart from showing that certain things have changed.

* * *

Chapter 4

As she sat in contemplation, there was a deafening roar. Izumi was startled back into full consciousness –she knew that sound.

A Hollow was nearby –she could sense it. But what was it doing here in the Soul Society? So much for Takezoe's promise that she wouldn't have to worry about them again.

Izumi scrambled to her feet and hurried to the edge of the platform. Below her was a small hamlet, away from the usual dangers of Zaraki, and a spider-like white-masked creature was chasing souls as they ran.

For Izumi, the path was clear –those were innocents. And she had sworn to protect innocents.

She may be unwilling or unable to kill humans, but this Hollow was a monster.

She raced down the slope, drawing her sword as she went. She pushed through the crowd racing in the opposite direction.

A small boy had fallen in the confusion of the crowd, and the Hollow was closing in. It swung at the boy, intending to kill, but it only hit a sword.

"Get away from here!" Izumi told the boy sheltering behind her, who picked himself up and ran. The Hollow backed off, slightly surprised.

"You're no Soul Reaper," the Hollow screeched. "Just who are you?"

Izumi didn't answer in words –she launched an attack on the Hollow. But she wasn't fast enough –the Hollow was able to dodge her blade and, before she could counter, swung at her.

The blow was forceful enough to draw blood from her right arm as she automatically raised it to block the claw from slicing into her face.

She was barely able to land properly, and her arm was almost too painful to allow her to grip her sword properly.

"Damn," she panted. This wasn't going well.

"Look at you," the Hollow almost laughed. "You're so pretty covered in your own blood like that! I'm going to enjoy eating you."

She rolled out of the way as the Hollow attacked her again. It barely missed, and turned quickly.

"I love playing tag," it guffawed.

'_I have to survive this,' _Izumi thought. _'I have to, for Hibiki.'_

As the Hollow reached for her, a red aura surrounded her. It was powerful, easily close to the level of anywhere from 3rd to 6th Seat in the Court Guard Squads.

"So you have some spiritual pressure," the Hollow said. Its eyes glinted with relish. "Now I'm really going to enjoy this!"

The aura faded as suddenly as it had appeared –Izumi was startled by it.

"So you have no control over your own spiritual energy?" the Hollow laughed again. "What a waste!"

It swung at her, and she wasn't fast enough to dodge out of the way. She collided solidly with the wall of one of the shacks and fell to the ground. She lost her sword in the process.

'_I can barely see,' _she thought as she struggled to focus on the Hollow. It raised a scythe-like claw, ready to stab her.

Izumi couldn't help it –she let out a yell of fear. If she couldn't defend herself against one Hollow, how was she ever going to avenge Hibiki?

She closed her eyes, waiting for the final blow.

"Scatter, Senbonzakura," said a calm voice from nearby. Pink cherry blossoms seemed to dance through the air, surrounding the Hollow.

When the air cleared, the Hollow was gone.

The blossoms retreated and returned to the hilt of a sword held by a man with long black hair, some of which was in a kenseikan (1). He was wearing the same sort of kimono as Takezoe had been wearing, but had a haori (2) over it. Around his shoulders, he was wearing a white scarf –silk from the look of it.

Izumi caught a glimpse of grey eyes before she lowered her gaze –for some reason, she was unable to look at the man.

"Byakura!" someone else called and another man appeared on the scene. He looked as though he was in his twenties, had bright orange coloured hair and carried a huge sword, as tall as he was, shaped like an oversized cleaver. He too was wearing a haori over his kimono (3).

"Was there really a need to release Senbonzakura here?"

The first man just looked at his companion and began to walk away.

"Hey! Where are you going?" the second Soul Reaper asked.

"OUr job here is done," the other said. "We should head back to the Seiretei."

He disappeared into thin air.

The second Soul Reaper swung his sword onto his back.

"Typical Byakura," he muttered. "He does whatever he feels like, and then just walks away."

He glanced over at the crumpled Izumi.

"Momo!" he called. A moment later, another Soul Reaper was at his elbow.

"Yes, Captain Kurosaki?" she asked.

"See what you can do for this girl, will you?" he asked. The other Soul Reaper knelt at Izumi's side. Her hands began to glow as they hovered over Izumi's injured arm. In a matter of minutes, she noticed that it was nowhere near as painful and the bleeding seemed to have stopped.

"I'm afraid you still have the scars from this," the girl said. Izumi moved her fingers -it didn't hurt.

The ginger-haired Soul Reaper -Captain the girl had called him -knelt in front of Izumi.

"I am Captain Ichigo Kurosaki of Squad 5 of the 13 Court Guard Squads," he told her. "This is my Lieutenant, Momo Hinamori."

"I am Izumi Kihara," she responded.

"You certainly have a lot of spiritual pressure," Kurosaki said. "Have you ever considered entering the Spiritual Arts Academy (4)?"

"Would they really allow a Zaraki to enter?" Izumi asked.

"They take in anyone with spiritual pressure," Ichigo said. "And it's a much better life than in Zaraki, right in the Seiretei."

"And how would you know that, Captain?" the girl, his Lieutenant asked, giggling.

"Give me a break, Momo, I did study kido there (5), remember?" the Captain said, momentarily distracted and turning magenta.

Izumi was considering it -this Academy sounded like a good idea.

"So how do you get into this Academy?" Izumi asked. The Captain turned his attention back to her.

"I'll met you at the North Seiretei gate in a week's time," he told her. "And I'll put in a personal recommendation for you. Then all you have to do is raise your spiritual pressure to the level you did a few minutes ago, answer a few questions, and you're in. Sounds simple enough, right?"

"I suppose so," Izumi said. "Thank you."

"No problem," Ichigo said, getting to his feet. "We should go now, Momo. Let's catch up with Byakura."

The two vanished in a flash. Izumi pulled herself up against the wall, retreived her sword, and headed for her retreat.

If she was to enter the Academy, she had to train. After all, she was supposed to be a Zaraki. Fighting and winning was in every Zaraki's blood.

* * *

(1) White headpiece worn by nobility

(2) Captain's coat.

(3) Ichigo Kurosake is now Captain of Squad 5, and aged slightly before dying and coming to the Soul Society.

(4) The full name of the Shinigami Academy is SHINOREIJTSUIN, sometimes shortened to Shino, also referred to as Soul Reaper Academy. It changed when it incorprated training to the Stealth Forces and Kido Corps.

(5) Just for the story, Ichigo attended the Academy for two years training to master the basics of kido.


	5. Chapter 5: Another Rise in Power

Took a while to update, hope you like it

PLEASE REVIEW!!

I do not own Bleach

* * *

Izumi retreated to her isolated training ground. She spent the rest of the day constructing dummies out of the loose branches she found lying around in the dense canopy of trees surrounding her isolated camp and training ground. She was determined: she was going to get stronger, and this was an ideal place to do so in secrecy.

It was dusk before she was finished. That was when she noticed her stomach growling in hunger she suddenly realised- she hadn't had anything to eat since coming to the Soul Society. But she hadn't been hungry before.

Why was she so hungry all of sudden? Takezoe had told her that she would never be hungry in the Soul Society. Had he lied to her?

She heard footsteps from behind her and scrambled to her feet. A tall man, with two deep slashes across his left cheek and another across his bare chest, was standing before her.

Izumi recognised him –he was the Champion of the village below. She had made the mistake of crossing blades with him when she had arrived in the area. The resultant wound on her back had ached for days afterwards.

He was Takashi Ito.

"What are you doing here, Ito?" Izumi asked, drawing her sword.

"Take it easy, Izumi," he replied.

Izumi was startled –his usage of her first name was a surprise in itself. Then she noticed the boy hiding behind Ito. She recognised the boy as the child she had protected from that Hollow.

"Kai wanted to thank you for what you did," Ito said. "You showed courage out there, even if your swordplay wasn't so impressive."

Izumi growled –so he had come to insult her? Ito continued.

"Rumours are already circulating about you, Kihara," he said, and Izumi noticed the shift back to her surname. "They say you're going to enter the Shinou Academy. So, until you go, I'm going to teach you how to sharpen your skills.

"That way, everyone will know you for a Zaraki's fighting power rather than the poverty and death of the 80th Northern Rukon Area. So what do you say?"

Izumi hesitated for a moment –was he serious? Learning from a champion could only help her, prepare her for the time she faced down Tsuji. That confrontation was going to happen sooner or later.

"Thank you, Ito," she said, bowing. "I will do my best to be a worthy student."

"I was expecting you to agree," Ito said. "Now come down to the village. A meal's prepared for you –you used up quite a lot of spirit energy. It drains you and makes you hungry in a world where you're not supposed to feel hungry."

So that was what had happened –the moment she had engaged the Hollow, she had tapped into her hibernating spiritual powers. And being the presence to three incredibly powerful Soul Reapers at once had drained her even further.

Kai lead the way back down the hill to the village, pulling on Izumi's hand most of the way.

Izumi received a hero's welcome, and a festive mood had infected the whole population, young and old. While they didn't have to eat, the villagers had brought barrel after barrel of sake [1] to the festivities. A large group of the men managed o get spectacularly drunk and Ito had to knock them out before they embarrassed themselves.

At one point during the night, Izumi tried one mug of the alcoholic drink; when morning came, she wished she hadn't.

*

Izumi woke up spluttering and soaked. Jolting into an upright position, she suddenly felt dizzy and put a hand against her head. Her face was dripping wet and, looking around, she found the reason close by.

"So you finally woke up," Ito said. He was standing over her, a now-empty bucket in one hand and a grin on his face. It was obvious that he had just dumped the contents over her head.

"You jerk!" Izumi snapped, already in a foul temper.

"Honestly, one drink of alcohol and you completely lose it," Ito said, his smirk remaining.

"Shut it," Izumi muttered, drying her face off.

"Are you ready to begin training?" Ito asked. Izumi drew her sword and nodded.

*

They didn't do any serious training that first day. Ito simply observed her movements and stances, correcting the basics.

The next day they moved onto sparring. Ito was actually impressed, although he'd never admit it out loud. Izumi improved steadily over the course of a day so that, when they stopped at dusk, she was able to hold her own against him. And he had been fighting with all his power behind every attack –she might be his student, but that didn't mean he'd go easy on her.

But there were a couple of things that had puzzled him since he had started teaching her to fight properly.

Ever since that one night, she hadn't needed to eat. She hadn't been using a drop of spiritual energy against him.

And she was a determined student, a fast learner. It was obvious there was some serious motive behind her actions, as though improving her skills before attending the Academy and becoming a Soul Reaper was only one step on the path she was taking.

It was only really her swordplay that really needed improvement. He had tester her hand-to-hand combat that first day. It had been as sharp and lethal as his was. And every movement spoke of grace.

As the sun sank lower in the sky and the fire blazed, the two sat on the grass. Ito passed his student a mug of water. She drank it and lay back in the grass.

He watched as she raised her right arm in front of her eyes and studied the deep parallel scars –the marks of her battle with the Hollow.

"I want to ask you something," Ito said, and Izumi looked at him. You haven't unleashed your spiritual pressure since that fight with the Hollow. Why not?"

Izumi lowered her arm.

"That was more of a fluke than anything else," Izumi said. "I don't know how to do it again."

Ito looked up at the stars, thinking. He knew something about spiritual energy, or reitsu. He had a small amount himself –not enough to enter the Academy himself, but enough to make him stand out. And he was sure that this girl's potential far outshone his own.

"Try thinking of it like this," he said, and sensed Izumi's eyes turning to watch him. "Think back to when you were protecting Kai. What was your reason for fighting back then? What emotions drew out your power? How strong was your will to protect the innocent?"

Izumi closed her eyes, falling into mediation.

Kai had been the first thing she had wanted to protect. She had made her choice then to protect the innocent , to make sure others didn't suffer cruelty and pain. She hadn't wanted a repeat of what had happened to Hibiki to happen to anyone. That red aura had pulsed around her had glowed brightest when she had feared that she wouldn't remain alive long enough to avenge Hibiki.

When she opened her eyes, they were filled with an iron resolve and determination. And that same red aura was pulsing around her. This time, however, it didn't fade away so suddenly- she wasn't surprised to see it this time.

Closing her eyes, she relaxed and the aura faded.

Now she had control of it, she was sure she would be able to call it out again, whenever she wanted it.

* * *

(1) A very popular drink in the Soul Society.


	6. Chapter 6: The Entrance Exam

I DO NOT OWN BLEACH!!

* * *

After six days of hard and harsh training, Izumi left Zaraki for the first time since she had arrived in the Soul Society.

She hadn't seen the Snake of Zaraki since that one day in the hut, and she was actually disappointed. Her swordplay had greatly increased since she had started training, and she felt more than ready to face Tsuji in mortal combat.

Right now, however, wasn't the time to go looking for him and his gang. She had to meet that Soul Reaper Captain at the North Gate. She made her way through the slums surrounding the central Seiretei.

The orange-haired Soul Reaper Captain was waiting for her a few feet from the entrance to the Seiretei –the pure court of the Soul Society, where the nobles and Soul Reapers lived.

"It's good to see you again," he said. "Are you ready?"

Izumi nodded and silently followed Ichigo. She wasn't sure where she stood with him –he was one of the elite, a Captain of the Court Guard Squads; she was the lowest of the low.

And now she was entering the boundaries of the Seiretei, heading for one of the main buildings.

When Ichigo pushed the door open, Izumi saw three men sitting at a table. They jumped to their feet when the duo entered.

"Welcome, Captain Kurosaki," one of them said. The eyes of the others were on Izumi. The Squad 5 Captain had booked this late exam for a Zaraki girl, and they had been curious for a while.

At the same time, they were surprised; looking at the girl, it was hard to believe that she was a Zaraki. Although her skin bore the looks of recent fights and her arms were muscular for someone who starved, everything else told a very different story. It looked as though she was shy, keeping her eyes averted. There was no bloodlust in her eyes, unlike the terribly insane and powerful Squad 11 Captain, Kenpachi Zaraki. The only blade she carried was a small dagger tucked into her obi.

"We are ready to begin the entrance exam, one of the trio said as the Captain stood to one side. "Please state your name for the register."

"Izumi Kihara," she responded immediately. Ichigo stood to one side, watching. He knew she would be admitted –her reitsu was strong for someone so young. In fact, she reminded him of himself before he had left the world of the living behind for good.

"We are going to test your reitsu level and ask you to take an intelligence test," one of the examiners said. "When you are ready, raise your reitsu level as high as you can."

They were a little bit sceptical –usually spiritual pressure poured out of untrained souls. And yet they had barely been able to detect her upon arrival.

That scepticism was washed away in a moment. Izumi was so good at suppressing and releasing her spiritual pressure it was now almost on a sub-conscious level.

Her red aura manifested itself around her without her needing to slip into mediation. It flickered and twitched around her, like flames. The examiners shrank back as her spiritual pressure rocketed up to that of a Lieutenant before it lowered to that of about a Third or Fourth Seated Officer.

Ichigo watched Izumi –if the kid was this powerful with no training, he was interested to see how powerful she became with training.

An hour and an IQ test later, and the two left the building. Izumi felt pride for the first time since coming to the Soul Society –that spike in reitsu had ensured her placement in the Academy.

Ichigo was heading back into the Rukon Districts –apparently he had patrol duty in one of the better areas.

"Captain Kurosaki," Izumi said, feeling uneasy. Ichigo turned to her. "Thank you for everything you did, sir," she said, bowing to him.

He laid a hand lightly on her head.

"You can call me Ichigo," he told her. Izumi was startled.

"I couldn't possibly show such disrespect," she protested. Then she caught his eye and lowered her head. "Could I just call you Captain Ichigo instead?"

"Seeing as that's as informal as you're going to get, I'll settle on that," Ichigo said. He turned and started to walk away. "I guess I'll see you at the Academy at some point. Take care, Izumi."

"Thank you, Captain Ichigo," Izumi said, bowing to Ichigo's retreating back before he disappeared from sight in an instant.

She headed off, back into Zaraki.

The new term began in half a month; she had some business she still had to take care off.

It was time to dethrone the Hebi.


	7. Chapter 7: Naomi

As she crossed the Kusajishi-Zaraki border, she felt comfortable; this was her home turf, no matter how dangerous and deadly it was.

Zaraki was the notorious 80th North Rukon District, its inhabitants the most beastly and cruel, where you stole or starved to death; it had spawned a large number of the infamous 11th Court Guard Squad, and their battle-loving Captain.

She wandered through the streets. Most of the tramps and homeless avoided her as she meandered through the District. A pickpocket attempted to steal her dagger, the one reminder of Hibiki and her resolve to defeat his killer. She broke the man's wrist with a deft twist.

After that, the other thieves in the area gave her a wide berth.

As she walked on, she heard a yelp of pain and fear. Looking down an alley to her right, she saw two men. She recognised them –two to Tsuji's gang.

They had a young girl pinned up against the wall. She was whimpering in absolute fear. They only laughed, one licking her cheek before placing his mouth over hers, forcing her mouth open and his tongue inside. The other one was working his hands into the girl's yukata.

Izumi was furious –the kid was so young, and had been exposed to unbelievable abuse. She launched herself at the men, driving them back as the girl choked for breath and started crying her eyes out.

"You little…" the man who had been touching the girl said, rubbing his stomach where Izumi's foot had connected with him.

The man who had been kissing the girl looked appreciably at Izumi's appearance, not missing the brown hair and emerald eyes. His erection rose just at the idea of mauling her.

Neither had noticed the fire in her eyes.

They rushed her, aiming to overpower her slight frame with muscle.

Izumi was an expert martial artist, and she easily kicked the men out of the alley, disarmed and humiliated.

She grabbed one by the front of his lapels, noticing the look of fear in his eyes with a strange satisfaction.

"I know you're one of Hebi's thugs," she said. "Take this message to your master, you dog. Tell him that when I met him, his reign of terror will end."

She threw the man away; he stumbled to his fellow, hoisted him up and retreated. Izumi watched them go.

She turned back to the alley to see the girl standing at the entrance. It was the first time she had properly seen the girl, and Izumi took in to black hair and blue eyes that stared intently at her.

"There's no need to be afraid, little one," she said, motioning for the girl to come out. She did so, taking one cautious step after another until she stood beside Izumi. She blinked up at her rescuer, eyes already full of trust.

"Are you alright?" Izumi asked, and the girl nodded. She did look unhurt, but Izumi shuddered to think what state she might have been in if she'd been any later arriving.

She sorted out the dishevelled yukata, keeping eye contact with the girl and looking for any signs of mistrust. There were none.

"Do you have a name?" she asked. The girl shook her head. Izumi sighed –the poor kid. She must have passed on too young to remember her name.

"I am Izumi Kihara," she told the girl. "And I give you the name Naomi Kihara."

The girl threw her arms around Izumi and sobbed into her shoulder. After a moment of startled surprise, Izumi wrapped her arms around her new sister.

"It's alright, Naomi," she whispered, doing her best to comfort the girl. "You're safe now. I won't let anyone hurt you again."

"Nee-san (1)," Naomi cried into her shoulder. After a while, the shock wore off and the sobbing subsided before it finally stopped.

Izumi stood and took the younger girl's hand before leading her onwards. She was subconsciously heading back to her hilltop retreat and training ground. Halfway there, Naomi started to fall asleep on her feet. Izumi picked her up and carried her in her arms.

She had someone to protect now; could she really leave to attend the Spiritual Arts Academy now, leaving Naomi behind in this dangerous place?

Only Soul Reapers and students at the Academy were allowed inside the central Seiretei without special permission. And for some reason, she didn't want to leave Naomi in anyone else's care –not even to Takashi Ito.

Life was so dangerous here and the Hebi had so much control that anyone who protected someone else would end up dead –just like Hibiki.

Until she had worked something out, they would live in isolation, and she would teach Naomi the same way Ito had taught her.

She arrived at the small hamlet as the sun began to sink in the west. People were lining the streets; many of them muttered under their breath as she passed them by, Something was going on, and Izumi didn't like it.

Her grip on Naomi grew tighter, and she was startled awake. Her eyes fell on the scene in front of them.

Ito was on the ground, held upright by two men while a third was slashing at his face with a dagger, stained red with his blood. Izumi recognised the Hebi and scowled angrily. He had done far too much damage already, and now he had overstepped the line.

She lowered Naomi to the ground, and the little girl immediately hurried into the crowd, making herself indistinguishable from the rest of the villagers. Izumi straightened and challenged the Hebi.

"Stop right now, Hebi!" she snapped. Tsuji turned away from the beaten Ito, who was struggling to see through a curtain of blood that dripped down over his eyes. He silently begged Izumi to run.

But it was too late –the Hebi had heard her challenge. There was only course open to remain the Hebi, and that was to destroy the girl.

"I'd heard rumours that this pretender was training someone," he said, a vicious grin on his face as he studied Izumi. She was a pretty thing, but there were scars that told him she had been in more than one tough battle.

And those emerald eyes …they were so full of fire, it was intoxicating.

"So are you ready to fight?" he said, drawing his curved dagger. "Are you willing to put your life on the line?"

Izumi didn't answer in words –she just pulled out her weapon, keeping her eyes on Tsuji.

His eyes widened as he saw the weapon. He recognised it –the dagger that had gone missing from Hibiki's destroyed hut. It should have been his prize. And this girl had taken it.

"You little thief!" he snapped. "Hand over the dagger, and I'll forget about the fact that you attacked my men and challenged me. But I will have to take your hand for this theft!"

"It never belonged to you, so I didn't steal from you," Izumi said. "It was Hibiki's, and now it's mine. You're going to regret the actions you took in that hut!"

"We'll see if you still feel that way once I take your life," Tsuji snarled.

There was a moment of terrible stillness, and an awful silence from the surrounding crowd.

Then there was a burst of movement as they charged each other.

A term of respect for an older sister.

1


	8. Chapter 8: Fangless Snake

I DO NOT owm Bleach

* * *

The clash of metal as dagger met dagger rippled through the silent street. Naomi clung tightly to the skirt of an unknown woman, eyes wide as she watched the fight.

Naomi was young and terrified, so she couldn't see as well as the other spectators could that Izumi was a good fighter. All she hoped for was that her sister wasn't badly hurt –or worse.

But to the better-trained Zaraki eye, it was obvious as Izumi and the Hebi parted, neither of them had even a scratch or bruise.

So far it was an even match.

Ito watched from where he had been left by the Hebu when Izumi had attracted her attention, his face still dripping blood. He was filled for anxiety for Izumi –she may have improved a great deal in a short amount of time, but the Hebi was a vicious and seasoned killer. He had ten times the experience Izumi had.

But even if he had been fit enough, he couldn't have stopped the match –like everyone else, he was eagerly watching an engaging battle, the sort he couldn't easily tear his eyes away from.

And he saw the look in Izumi's eyes –she actually wanted this fight.

The two combatants parted after a few moments of intense hand-to-hand combat, panting slightly.

Now it looked as though the Hebi had come out on top –Izumi had taken more blows and two were actually very severe; she was bleeding from a deep neck wound and the sleeve of her yukata was ripped from where a slash had landed on her right arm, right across the scars left from her fight with the Hollow.

The Hebi sneered –he had drawn this battle out, savouring it and enjoying watching his opponent squirm. All she had managed to do was graze his cheek. The girl may look and act as though she was a warrior, could move and strike as though she was a seasoned killer, but she gravely lacked the power and experience to harm him.

He rushed forward, knocking the girl into the dirty road with a vicious backhanded blow. As she fell back, he straddled her chest, twirling his knife. He was going to drag this out, relief himself and utterly humiliate her in front of the crowd.

He wanted to hear her beg for death.

Tsuji never saw her grasp the handle of her knife. He never saw the subtle turn of her body as she watched his every move.

Then, as his knife descended towards her breast, there was a sudden blur as the steel whizzed through the air and effortlessly sliced through skin, muscle and bone. His knife-hand fell away, still clutching his knife, landing with a sickening thud.

There was a ringing silence as the crowd and Tsuji's gang stared. Tsuji was in shock, just sitting and staring at the bleeding lump.

Then he fell away from Izumi, screaming in pain and humiliated anger.

With his hand gone, it was no real challenge for Izumi to grab the front of his tunic and threw him onto the ground. As he struggled to get back on his feet, Izumi's weight was suddenly on top of him. One hand gripped his hair, pulling it back, forcing him to raise his head. The other pressed the tip of her dagger into his throat.

Tsuji had lost the fight. The title of Hebi no longer belonged to him. His life was forfeit.

He closed his eyes, waiting for the killing blow. Any moment now, that dagger would slash across his throat and take his life.

Izumi was steeling herself for the fateful decision. She knew what the crowd was waiting for and expected –for the new Hebi to kill the last. But she had a personal choice to make –to kill and square the debt of life in kind, or to spare her greatest enemy and leave him to suffer the greatest humiliation as a fighter of Zaraki.

She had won, stripped him of his pride, title and fang already. And, as much as she wanted to end this once and for all, she was just not the sort of person who needlessly killed. Izumi realised that she wasn't cut out to take a human life, even if it was that of her greatest enemy.

Slowly, she removed the dagger from his throat, releasing him as she returned the dagger to its sheath.

As murmurs ran through the astonished crowd at the unexpected mercy, she searched for her sister. Sensing that the danger was over, Naomi left the crowd and ran to her older sister. Naomi was concerned about the gashes and cuts on her sister and almost started to drag her away. Those who lined the street laughed at this scene. As the two sisters began to walk away, an angry voice rang out across the street.

"What are you doing?" Tsuji thundered, angry at his humiliation. He sat in the middle of the dirt track, glowering at Izumi's back. "Come back here and finish what you started. I have my pride; kill me now!"

Izumi turned back, her eyes cold.

"You don't deserve death, not even after everything you have done," she said. "Consider this punishment from all those you ever hurt or killed. Besides, with your fang missing, you'll never be a threat to anyone ever again."

Tsuji, the former Hebi, watched as Naomi threw her arms around Izumi's waist, tears in her eyes. He saw Izumi crouch down and sooth her sister before they walked away without another backward look.

Ito rose to his feet as the men who had been holding him released their grip. Now that their leader was overthrown, they were unsure what to do. Ito wasn't as merciless as Izumi and stabbed the worst thugs in their hearts. All around, families were rising up against those who had offended them and hurt them. The survivors flocked around Ito. He was the known Champion of the hamlet –even if he didn't hold the revered title of Hebi, he had trained the girl who now held it.

Of the fifteen-strong gang, only about five survived the purge.

One of the survivors knelt to Ito, and the rest quickly followed suit.

Tsuji just sat where he had fallen, humiliated and bleeding. For some reason, no one was trying to approach him as they picked off his followers. He tried to convince himself that he didn't care about the fact that he was bleeding to death.

But it was not working –he was in debt to the girl. He respected her strength, and for the first time in his life, he knew the meaning of humility. For as long as he was around, he would serve the new Hebi.

He felt someone take his arm and looked up into Ito's eyes. He allowed his wound to be cleaned and dressed. No one seemed to fear the fallen fighter anymore. It was a strange sensation to him.

Ever since he had come to Zaraki, he had been as cruel and cold as the winter, intimidating everyone. He was strangely glad that cruelty had been ripped away. He was already becoming a reformed man, a humbled servant.

"If you are planning to go after Izumi, I know where she's most likely to be," Ito said as Tsuji got to his feet, slightly dizzy from blood loss. Once the blood had stopped flowing and the bandage had been changed again, Tsuji recovered his strength with a few hours of sleep. In the late afternoon the following day, Ito led Tsuji and the remnants of the gang out of the hamlet. Tsuji had forgotten that Ito had trained the girl who was now the Hebi of Zaraki.

After climbing a steep slope, they came to the edge of the woods and looked out at the clearing in front of them. It was flat, a campfire burning a few feet away beside a shelter. And, almost at the far end of the clearing, Izumi was teaching the younger girl how to throw throwing knives, demonstrating a technique that enabled her to throw two knives in quick succession at a target. She watched as Naomi tried to imitate her, correcting the mistakes and stance for a single throw.

As they watched, Izumi seemed to become aware of their presence. She spun on one heel and loosed a knife at their hiding place –all in one fluid movement.

Ito only just managed to catch the knife as the rest flinched away and stepped out of hiding, indicating for the others to follow.

Izumi smiled in welcome at her old mentor before a look of surprise passed across her face when the others stepped out of hiding –including Tsuji.

"What are you doing here?" Izumi asked, fingers lightly handling the hilt of the dagger, tensing for another fight. Her wounds were bandaged and cleaned, but they were still tender. She was very surprised when all the men dropped to their knees before her, including the one-handed Tsuji.

"You are the Hebi of Zaraki," Ito said, as though stating the obvious. "We all wish to offer you our services."

"I-" Izumi said, intending to remind Ito that she was due to begin at the Academy, but she changed her mind.

It felt as though she was supposed to stay –she had Naomi to look after now. And Naomi wasn't the only one in need of her protection; she had an entire District to care for. She could use this gang of unexpected followers and her position as Hebi to safeguard her people's safety and wellbeing. She wanted to bring peace and happiness to the poorest District; she planned to lessen the poverty and insecurity.

And to do that, she needed all the help she could get. The people of Zaraki needed her a lot more than the Academy or Soul Reapers did.

The men seemed to take her silence as a grateful answer.

Naomi was mistrustful of them at first, but that barrier broke over time. One of the men, Ito, seemed to be her sister's confidante and he trained her how to use the wabashi that she had found in her sister's pack. Tsuji waited on her sister's every need, and the others were as willing to serve her as they did her sister.


	9. Chapter 9: Pressure part 1

The new term had begun a week ago.

The Principle usually didn't care much for the rude no-shows, but he was making an exception for the Zaraki girl. She had been found by, and received the recommendation of, a Captain, Squad 5's Ichigo Kurosaki, and had proved her own value. She had won a place in the Advanced Class because of her strong spiritual pressure and had scored high in the IQ test. Being a Zaraki meant that she was not expected to know about the history of the Seiretei, but she had known the basic jobs a Soul Reaper performed and understood the basics of a Hollow.

So he had to get her to take up her place.

He put in a request for the 11th Squad's 10th Seat Makizo Aramaki to come to the Academy; there he briefed him on Izumi Kihara.

Aramaki headed for Zaraki and located the secluded glen by homing in on her trace of spiritual energy. He watched from the cover of the trees –about six men were surrounding a girl who matched Kihara's description. They were armed with wooden staffs; she was bare-handed. It hardly looked like a fair fight. He fingered the hilt of his zanpukto.

"You'd better not interrupt Izumi's training," said a voice from behind him. He froze and looked around.

A girl, several years younger than Izumi, was sitting in the branches of a tall tree, dangling her legs down. She had raven hair and dark-blue eyes. The girl continued. "She'll be very unhappy if you do."

Aramaki shivered –this girl looked so different from the crazy pink-haired candy-loving Lieutenant of his Squad, but they were so similar personality-wise that it was scary.

"I am Makizoe Aramaki, of the 11th Squad," he told her.

"And I'm Naomi Kihara," the girl said seriously before grinning like a Cheshire cat and giggling. "Did anyone ever tell you that your name's really funny?"

Aramaki sweat-dropped –this girl really was another Lieutenant Yachiru Kushajishi! It was probably a good thing she didn't know about his nickname if she broke down like this at hearing his full name.

He turned back to the practice in the field. He watched in amazement as Izumi almost effortlessly disarmed and knocked several unconscious with a few well-timed punches and kicks.

As those still conscious nursed their wounds and broken egos, a man who was vividly missing his right hand approached her, bowing as he handed her a mug of liquid. Izumi obviously was someone with a lot of power –they were treating her like she was a noble.

The strange yet familiar girl, Naomi, leapt from her perch and ran towards her sister, laughing as she grabbed Izumi around the waist. Izumi fell backwards onto the grass, pinned by her sister.

"You're getting too big to do this," Izumi complained. But she was secretly pleased -her sister was growing strong from the air and training. She had been skin and bones when they had first met.

"There's a strange man there!" Naomi burst out as she got up and Izumi got back to her feet. Aramaki winced –he had wanted to make an entrance that was a lot more dignified.

"Is there really?" Izumi asked. She was on edge –she didn't want anyone here without her knowledge and say-so. It was unofficial, but Ito had taken on the role as leading bodyguard, and he had put it upon himself to ensure her security at all times. She couldn't believe someone had slipped through his watchful net. She cupped a hand around her mouth and called out. "Come on out, 'funny man'!"

As Aramaki stepped out, he could feel the analyzing gazes of those in the glen. He forced himself to look into the brunette's emerald-like gaze –she was the one he was here to see.

"What's a Soul Reaper doing here?" Izumi asked eventually. Aramaki cleared his thoat.

"I am Makizoe Aramaki, 10th Seat of the 11th Squad," he introduced himself. "I have a message for Izumi Kihara.

"You are required to enter the Spiritual Arts Academy, immediately."

Izumi just looked at him.

Then she spiked her own spiritual pressure. Aramaki gasped as it rose to Third-Seat level, crushing him until he was on his hands and knees before her.

And he wasn't the only one pinned down. All of the men around her were down on their knees, gasping for air. The only one who seemed unaffected was the strange younger girl, although she did seem a little breathless.

At last Izumi let up on her spiritual pressure, allowing Aramaki to gulp for air like a fish out of water. The others gasped in relief.

"Return with this message," she said. "I regret not taking up my position at the Academy, but I have a younger sister to look after as well as an obligation to watch over Zaraki. So I won't be leaving."

Aramaki turned and ran for it. Sweat glistened on his forehead –Izumi was powerful, even untrained. There had been rumours circulating ever since Ichigo had brought the kid into the Seiretei, ever since they had all sensed that unfamiliar Lieutenant/3rd Seat-level spiritual pressure.

And now Aramaki knew first-hand how true the rumours were.

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	10. Chapter 10: Pressure part 2

I do NOT own Bleach

* * *

The Principle was not impressed.

The Zaraki Squad was supposed to be the toughest in the Seiretei's Court Guard Squads, the best melee combat unit. And one of their Seated officers had just retreated like a spineless dog.

Then again, the girl had released 3rd Seat level pressure, forcing anyone with less into submission.

So he would have to send someone with equal spiritual pressure, someone who wouldn't be threatened.

He sent a request for the 3rd Seat of the Zaraki Squad, the bald Ikkaku Madarame.

Izumi was dreaming.

In her dream, she was surrounded by red-hot flames, but they never burnt her. The flames parted as she walked through them, as if she held some strange sort of power over them

"Izumi!" something screeched her name. Izumi looked around, searching for the source. A huge red-gold bird flew overhead –a phoenix. Izumi followed in its wake until it landed a few feet away before turning to her.

Its appearance shifted until 'it' became a 'he', dressed in red-gold armour resembling that of an ancient Greek hoplite. His arms had remained as wings, the same red-gold hue as the rest of his appearance. Izumi couldn't make out the colour of his skin, but his eyes burnt into her –a glistening beetle-black. They seemed so alien, and yet so familiar.

"Who are you?" Izumi asked.

"Don't you know?" the figure asked in response. His voice was deep and soothing. Standing in his presence and listening to his voice was like seeing and hearing an old friend. "I was born with you, and will be with you until you die. I am…"

Izumi was unable to hear his name –it was as though it was drowned out on the way to her ears. The man-bird saw this and sighed.

"So I still cannot reach across the void," he said. "I wonder how long it will be until you can hear me. Just know I will be beside you. It's up to you how long it takes until we can truly be together."

With that, he shifted his form again, returning to the shape of a phoenix and flew away.

Izumi tried to follow, but a curtain of fire rose from the ground and forced her back. She couldn't find a way past. She was trapped.

"Izumi, wake up!" Naomi shook her sister's shoulder before jerking away with a startled yelp –her sister's skin was radiating an incredible and painful heat. What was going on?

Ito stood back, watching. He had a vague idea of what was happening –Izumi's untrained mind was trying to find her zanpukto spirit. It was fairly obvious that it was a fire-based type –with the red aura and her sister's burnt palms, what else could it be?

"It's alright, Naomi," he said, dressing the burns. "Izumi's going to be fine."

"What's happening to her?" the girl sobbed from pain and worry. She was soothed slightly by this man's presence –he was a father-figure, just as Izumi was her sister.

"She and her zanpukto spirit are trying to connect with each other," Ito explained. "Right now, she's not aware of the world around the world around her."

"Will she be alright?" Naomi asked.

"She'll be fine," Ito assured her. "She'll be awake before too much longer."

Hands bandaged and calm again, Naomi sat beside her sister, watching her.

About ten minutes later, Izumi's eyes snapped open. She saw Naomi beside her, noticed her wrapped hands and realised she had hurt her little sister.

She drew Naomi into an embrace. She almost shrunk away from the arms, afraid of being burnt again. But while the hug was warm and caring, there was no longer any trace of it being an out-of-control fire.

"I'm sorry," Izumi whispered, stroking her sister's hair.

The dream was still raw and clear in the back of her mind –it was no ordinary dream. It had been a vision, or something like it. And it seemed that, while she had slept, it had been out of control in the physical world.

"So you're on the verge of achieving shikai (1), huh?" said a voice from the shadows. Ito immediately stepped between the unannounced intruder and the two sisters.

"Relax," the voice said. A man stepped out of the shadows. He was another Soul Reaper, a zanpukto in its sheath held in his hands. He had painted red marks on his eyes, but the most eye-catching characteristic of the man was the fact that he was completely bald.

"Shiny!" Naomi's eyes gleamed with childish mischief. One of the man's eyebrows twitched in irritation. Naomi would have tackled him if Izumi hadn't grabbed the back of her pink-with-blue-flowers yukata, jerking her to a standstill.

"Calm down, magpie," she said. Izumi turned her attention back to the man. "Just who are you?"

"I am Ikkaku Madarame, 3rd Seat of the Zaraki Squad," the man said. "I take it you're Izumi Kihara?"

"I am, and my answer hasn't changed," she said coldly. She knew that she didn't have the advantage of supreme spiritual energy in this situation, but that didn't mean she would roll over to his demands.

"That is a shame, because it means I have to force you into the Academy now," Madarame said, drawing his zanpukto. He kept his sheath in his left hand. Ito stepped forward, prepared to fight for Izumi.

"Stand down," Izumi ordered, and Ito blinked at the command. "This is my fight."

She drew the dagger from its sheath, raising her spiritual energy to allow her to fight on relatively equal footing with the experienced 3rd Seat Soul Reaper. Ikkaku grinned when he felt the energy that had forced the 10th Seat to the ground.

Izumi's training had taught her to be fast, flexible and powerful. She had always fought to win. Her analytical mind soon spotted the fact that Ikkaku moved and fought as though it was only for sport.

Ikkaku was grinning as they separated –he could see that her fighting style really was that of a Zaraki, and she had a great deal of potential. She moved well and fast, blocking his sheath whenever he used it for an assault with her arm, leaving her dagger free to attack with and counter his sword.

They clashed again, dagger and sword throwing up sparks with the force of impact.

"If you don't go to the Academy, you'll end up hurting everyone as your powers become more potent. You have so much potential. Why not leave Zaraki behind?"

"I can't," Izumi hissed back, angered by the fact that he was messing with her head, distracting her from the fight. "I'll learn to control it. And I won't abandon Naomi."

Ikkaku glanced over at the young girl. So she was the reason that Izumi stubbornly remained in Zaraki when she had such a bright future as a member of one of the thirteen Court Guard Squads.

He could sense slight reitsu levels around the girl. It was incredibly weak, as though the energy was leaking through a tiny crack in drips.

There was only one way to force it all out.

Knocking Izumi to the ground in a show of his full power, he leapt at Naomi. The hulking figure of the man with them was caught off-guard by his sudden and unexpected move. Naomi was wide open.

Panic ripped through both Izumi and Naomi. As Izumi scrambled to her feet, grasping for her dagger, Naomi screamed.

But it wasn't just sound that escaped Naomi –a blast of dense spiritual energy hit Ikkaku, blasting him backwards.

It wasn't exactly overpowering, maybe 6th Seat level at best, but it was still Soul Reaper level power.

Naomi stood amazed at what had happened, and both Izumi and Ito couldn't believe what they had both just felt –Izumi's little sister had spiritual powers as well.

"It looks to me like you won't need to leave your sister behind after all," Ikkaku said, breaking the awkward tension as he sheathed his katana.

* * *

(1) The first release of the zanpukto; Ichigo's zanpukto is constantly in its released shikai form.


	11. Chapter 11: Zanpukto Spirit

I do NOT own Bleach

* * *

Izumi walked along the corridor of the Spiritual Arts Academy, head down and avoiding everyone's eyes.

She wore the standard uniform of the female Academy student: red hakana (1), with white socks and reed sandals, and a white kosodo (2) with red stripes down the sleeves and circular patterns on each breast over a red shitagi (3). Naomi wore an identical but smaller version, and the boys wore a blue version.

Ever since she had donned the uniform and enrolled with Naomi, the two had been playing catch-up. They were a week behind the rest of the class. For Naomi, it wasn't so bad –she was in the normal Freshers' group, learning at a slower pace with classmates who were willing to help if she didn't understand something.

But Izumi had been placed in the Advanced Class, meaning lessons were more complex and detailed. As if that wasn't bad enough, the majority of the class were from nobility and the better-off Rukon Areas. She was from a completely different world of poverty and constant fighting. Even though they were now in the Academy, they were still regarded as the lowest of the low.

She was not only struggling to keep up to date but also to complete work she had missed. And she had to put up with the snide and rude comments of the nobles who looked down at her in particular. They were a constant distraction, and a rather demoralising one.

However, in the practicals of Zanjutsu (4) and Hakudo (5) Izumi clearly shown as one of the better students. It made up for the fact that she had fallen behind in the general subjects and was scoring average in the areas of Hoho (6) and Kido.

Her Kido lecture had finished and she was making her way to the library to study on her missed lectures. She knew it was going to take a while –she had been so busy lately, she had started skipping evening meals.

As expected, she was still working when the gong sounded nine. The library had been quiet for hours; most students had returned to their dorm rooms by now. She decided she had worked enough –she had finished the sections on Law and History that she had missed as well as her Algebra assignment.

She gathered up her notes, returned the reference books to the correct shelves and headed out of the library, back to the dorm on campus. The Seiretei was lined with oil-fuelled burning torches, and Soul Reapers were stationed on guard duty. Some of them greeted her as she went past, earning automatic respectful replies.

At least the full Soul Reapers weren't judging her by District.

Her room was standing dark when she walked in. Naomi was already fast asleep on one of the room's futons. The two sisters had been placed in the same room. Izumi quietly put her notes on the desk before clambering onto her futon and shutting her eyes.

She quickly fell asleep.

It came as no real surprise when she found herself surrounded by flickering flames –it was happening incredibly frequently. Looking around, she couldn't see any trace of the figure from before. Somehow, it didn't feel right to be here without –whoever he was.

No matter how hard, she had strained her ears, she had never been able to make out his name.

After some time in lectures, Izumi had worked out what he was: the spirit-form of her zanpukto. Since she had first fought with the dagger, she had infused it with some of her own soul. That dagger was now her zanpukto. It lay beneath her bed –freshmen weren't expected to learn the name of their zanpuktos yet.

Knowing the spirit's name and learning the release command was the first step to gaining shikai, the first release of zanpukto. To join a Squad, a candidate had to first learn shikai and unlock the weapon's full powers. The zanpukto wasn't just a weapon –it was an extension of its wielder, part of their soul. The next level was Bankai, to release the ultimate power of the zanpukto. But only those of captain-class capability could release that sort of power by overpowering the spirit-form of their zanpukto. And there were very few potential candidates with the spiritual powers to do that.

But almost every single night, her zanpukto-spirit reached out to her, pulling her into her inner world of flames. And now it had happened again.

Izumi was not exactly sure how she felt about her inner world being completely made out of fire; but somehow she had just accepted and grown used to it.

"Welcome back," the zanpukto-spirit's familiar voice said, and Izumi turned to see the nameless apparition. He threw a wooden bamboo sword to her. "Spar with me."

With that, he launched himself at her. She was so caught off-guard that she barely had time to parry the blow.

"What are you doing?" she demanded. The spirit wasn't holding anything back, pushing her harder and harder, as though they were mortal enemies. Nothing else had been able to force her to hear his name –maybe this would do it.

He wanted to take on his shikai form as much as she wanted to see it –more than anything else.

After an hour of mental sparring, however, they had made little to no progress. Izumi's technique had improved, but she had not needed to find his name.

Izumi woke abruptly, with the distinct feeling that the zanpukto-spirit was incredibly pissed off at her.

"What was all that about?" she wondered before drifting into a normal dream.

The next day dawned, signalling the start of more lectures and practical sessions.

During the practical Zanjutsu session, her teacher couldn't help noticing that one of his top students was not fighting as well as he knew she could.

"Kihara!" he called, motioning her over.

"Yes, sensei (7)?" Izumi asked, bowing low.

"You seem distracted today," he stated. "Is there anything wrong?"

Izumi hesitated for a moment, and then decided to tell her teacher about her zanpukto-spirit.

He was startled by the news that she was in communication with her zanpukto already –it was barely three weeks since the term had begun, one and a half since she and Naomi had enrolled. And for someone who had fallen behind, her grades were high. In fact, she was starting to pull ahead.

Most students, even the brightest sparks, couldn't even see their zanpukto spirit until the beginning of the second year.

Kihara's abilities in Hakudo and Zanjutsu and, to a lesser degree, Hoho were equal to any of the present Third Years. Only her Kido was slightly shakier but with practice, she would quickly rise to the level of a Third Year student. She might be able to qualify for a placement into the Fourth Year.

But to qualify for the Advanced Placement, she had first to be able to summon and fully use shikai.

"I want you to met me inside Dojo 11 tomorrow at noon," he told her. "Bring along your zanpukto. We'll get that shikai release."

"Thank you, Sensei," Izumi said, bowing again before moving back to her sparring partner.

Rumours were beginning to circulate by the time Izumi reached the cafeteria area, and all of it was scandalous. As she took her tray and moved to sit with her sister, she was aware that they were whispering about the 'teacher's pet.'

"What's going on, Kihara?" asked a voice behind her. She looked around to see one of the many nobles from her class. Raidon Kuchiki was proud and powerful, the son and heir of the current clan leader, and he was one of Izumi's greatest rivals.

There were rumours that he was going to be put straight into the Fourth Year the following year. He was also the top student, receiving the highest grades, Izumi right behind him.

Izumi just ignored him –he wasn't worth wasting her time on.

"I heard you're heading to Dojo 11 tomorrow," he went on, ignoring the hint to walk away. "I heard that Etui-sensei is going to be there as well. So what are you up to?"

"I need a little extra training,"Izumi said coldly. "It's just private tuition. I'm sure you've had plenty, Mr High-and-Mighty."

Raidon Kuchiki stiffened at the obvious disrespect and grabbed Izumi by her shirt. The eyes of all the students were turning to watch the confrontation between noble and Zaraki.

"Maybe I should just follow you tomorrow," Raidon said, malice in his tone.

"Just try it and I'll drop you where you stand," Izumi countered.

Raidon bored of picking on the Zaraki; he couldn't believe he was jealous of such a nobody, even if she was the second-brightest in the year. He released her and stalked away.

Izumi straightened her kosodo and retook her seat.

She couldn't care less what that stuck-up noble or the rest thought about her. She'd show them.

* * *

(1) Trousers

(2) Shirt

(3) Undershirt

(4) Swordplay

(5) Hand-to-hand Combat

(6) Movement

(7) Polite term for a teacher or figure of authority


	12. Chapter 12: Achieving Shikai

I do NOT own Bleach

* * *

Izumi had her zanpukto hidden beneath her training kosodo as she made her way to Dojo 11. It was isolated and, going by the size of the structure, quite large. She was grateful that it was noon on a Saturday –most of the rest of the student body was either in bed or wandering down to breakfast in the great hall.

Etui-sensei was waiting for her inside.

"Welcome, Kihara," he said. "Now, before we begin, do you know anything about your zanpukto-spirit's nature?"

"He's a fire-based type," Izumi said, remembering how her inner world was made up entirely of flames and how she had accidently burnt her sister. "He likes fighting. In fact, it was when I was fighting him in my inner world that I came closest to hearing his name."

"Are you sure your zanpukto spirit is male?" Etui asjed, and Izumi nodded in response. "It's actually unusual for zanpukto and wielder to be of different genders (1), but that's not overally important.

"The other part of what you said is important. If he likes fighting, and you almost heard his name during an internal fight, then let's make that an external fight."

He drew his sword, effortlessly drawing his zanpukto's shikai. The blade whistled and the air suddenly felt heavy, as though it was made out of concrete, pressing down on Izumi.

She felt as though she was being suffocated even as she breathed; it felt as though there was a hand around her throat, squeezing tighter and tighter.

"What are you waiting for?" demanded a voice she knew all too well. She was back in her inner world, the flames starting to die as though her teacher's zanpukto was having a direct effect in here. The spirit of her zanpukto was crouching before her.

"Are you going to call for me, or do you want to die?" the spirit asked. The failing flames licked around her and, in that moment, Izumi at last heard the one word that she could never make out before.

Leaving her inner world, she felt as though she was no longer alone, that another power was sharing her body with her, guiding her.

Her spiritual energy rose, forcing the effects of the opposing zanpukto's shikai to disperse slightly.

Etui smiled to himself –here it comes.

"Blaze, Fenikagi (2)!" Izumi pretty much shouted.

Her dagger changed form; it was now a katana, red flames swirling around its length. It was very impressive, and Etui could sense the danger of a controlled fire oozing from it.

"Very good," he said, recalling his zanpukto to its sealed form. Izumi did the same. "I think that's enough for one lesson. Return to your daily activities and keep that zanpukto out of sight."

"Yes, sensei," Izumi said again, leaving the dojo.

Etui smiled to himself –there was a lot of potential in that girl. Give her a few more years here, and she would have matured into an ideal Lieutenant.

* * *

(1) The only Soul Reapers I can think of that share this trait are Urahara's Benehime and Kyoraku's Katen Kyokotsu

(2) 'Eternal Phoenix'


	13. Chapter 13: Two Shikai

I do NOT own Bleach

PLZ review -and be nice!

* * *

Over the next few weeks, Etui continued to give Izumi private training every Saturday morning so she could master her shikai. In regular classes, he had more pressure put on her by other teachers to out-perform the others.

She had no idea that he was pushing her to be so far ahead of the majority of the class, had no idea she was being tested to the level of a Third-Year student.

Only one person remained ahead of her, and that was Raidon Kuchiki.

Her shikai was very powerful. In the course of seven weeks, she learnt to unlock Fenikagi's true potential.

If she willed it, she could raise a wall of fire around herself as an impenetrable defence against any external attack that burnt everything but her.

Or she could cause arcs of fire to leave the fire-surrounded blade and strike an opponent (1), or cause the fire surrounding the blade to extend like a whip and use it on either the zanpukto of her foe or directly against the user.

She also unlocked the ability to manifest a phoenix from either her fiery wall or flame-encircled blade and send that at her opponent with the vocation of 'Fly'.

Etui was impressed. After careful study, her zanpukto was almost the exact opposite of Squad 10 Captain Hitsugaya's ice-based dragon zanpukto Hyorimaru.

After eight weeks of shikai training and increased theoretical and practical pressure, Etui held her back after Zanjutsu and informed her that her shikai training was at an end.

"I am also nominating you to take the Advanced Placement Exam to go straight into Fourth Year next year," he told her. Izumi looked completely taken aback. "You're easily outperforming the majority of your class, your kido has really improved, and you have a shikai and fully know how to use its abilities."

"I am honoured, Etui-sensei," Izumi said eventually.

"The exam will take place in the final week of the First Year," Etui said. "Until then, you must act as any other first year and not reveal that you have a shikai."

"Yes, sir," Izumi said. "I won't disappoint you, sensei."

Izumi hurried onto her next lesson. She slipped into a seat at the end of a row, noticing that she had Raidon was sitting behind her.

Before tension could spin out of control, their teacher for the one-term untested Spirit Basics module arrived.

"Settle down," she said distractedly, brushing a wispy strand of hair out of her face before looking around the class. "Alright, if you've done you assignments, pass them to the end and I'll collect them. If you haven't, stay behind after class."

Izumi pulled the parchment out of her bag and placed it beside her as the rest of the row passed theirs to her. They had been asked to explain the evolution on Hollows from the ordinary Human World invader through to the level of Vasto Lordes, the highest class of Menos Grande, and associated characteristics.

The lesson flew by, taken up with a lecture on Jibuko spirits (2), chained to the source of their pain and regret, hiding in the earth where Soul Reapers couldn't detect them if humans didn't disturb them.

"I want to announce one more thing," the teacher said at the end of the class. "A week today, we are going to the Real World to do a practical Konsol on spirits. It is compulsory and we depart from the main gates at noon. That is all."

The gong sounded, signalling the end of lunch and the start of dinner.

Naomi was already there, and seemed envious when Izumi told her that her class was going to the Real World next week.

"They won't even let us near dummy Hollows," she said.

"You'll get your chances," Izumi said. "And I'm sure real Hollows will run for cover when you're a full Soul Reaper."

Naomi's eyes filled with light at that picture.

"Are you taking him?" Naomi asked, lowering her voice. Her sister was the only person she had told about her shikai release and training.

"Probably not," Izumi said. "There'll be a Barrier Unit in position; they'll be keeping Hollows and anything else dangerous away."

"So who's 'him'?" asked a voice directly behind Izumi.

Raidon had been passing by and had stopped at the table ever since he had heard Naomi mention a 'him'. Izumi was extremely annoyed that he'd been listening into their conversation –she'd almost said Fenikagi's name out loud.

"Don't you know it is bad manners to listen into other people's conversations, Kuchiki?" Izumi asked, recovering from her shock and anger, ready for another fight with the noble snob. "And you call yourself a noble?"

Raidon grabbed her kosodo's front –something that he seemed fond of doing.

He had just about had it with the cocky girl. She was second in the class –she should show a lot more respect to someone who was her better in every way.

"What is going on here?" asked a curt voice from beside them.

"Etui-sensei," Raidon said, releasing his hold on Izumi.

"I trust you have an explanation for this, or should I have you both report to the Principle's office?"

Izumi and Raidon both gulped –the Principle was a very strict and fierce man. Neither of them had any desire to face him.

"Kihara had been disrespectful of my family," Raidon said.

"I see. Is there any reason for that, Kihara?" the Zanjutsu master asked. Raidon smirked –she was about to be blamed for everything.

"I was talking with my sister, and Kuchiki listened into a private conversation," Izumi replied calmly. She met Raidon's eyes as his smirk lessened. "I apologise if I insulted the noble Kuchiki name when I only meant to insult you."

Etui sighed as the two glowered at each other –this tension between noble and commoner had been going on since the start of term. And it had just got out of hand. This had to stop.

"Come with me, both of you," he instructed, and headed to Dojo 11 with both following him. Once they were there, Etui ordered Izumi to collect 'something', and she left to get Fenikagi.

When she got back, she saw Raidon was holding a katana. Something about it told her that this was his zanpukto. His eyes fell on her dagger, and he seemed to reach the same conclusion as she had about him.

"Both of you have had private training, and both of you have a shikai. Because of that, both of you have been nominated to take the Advanced Placement exam at the end of the year."

"You have Shikai?" Raidon asked, just as Izumi voiced the same question.

"I would like you to train together, under my supervision," Etui continued. He was anxious that the competition between the two might result in serious blows. So until he felt he could trust them, he would watch the training. "And I'm ordering you to keep the existence of the other's zanpukto secret from everyone else."

"Yes, sensei," the two said before turning to each other.

"Gallop through the misty lands, Umashiro (3)," Raidon intoned. His zanpukto changed until it had a white guard and grip while the actual blade remained cold steel (4). Mist started gathering in the Dojo –obviously an effect of his zanpukto.

"Blaze, Fenikagi," Izumi commanded, and her dagger took on its fire-encased katana form.

A horse-like creature reared out of the mist, charging at Izumi as she raised her fiery wall in preparation. The heat dispersed the mist and slight frost.

"Fly!" Izumi said from behind the wall of warm safety and defence. Raidon's eyes widened as a phoenix burst from the defensive ring of fire and flew at him.

It turned before it reached him, obviously controlled by Izumi and only meant to give him a whiff of its full power. He conjured up another horse from the mist and had it gallop below the soaring phoenix. It was quite a sight.

The phoenix returned to the flames around Izumi's zanpukto as she resealed it. He followed suit.

"That was an impressive display," he complimented her.

"You too," she said and held out her hand. Raidon didn't hesitate to shake it. Etui smiled –it looked as though the rift between the two top students of their year had finally and firmly closed.

* * *

(1) Imagine a fire-version of Getsuga Tenshou

(2) Chained wholes on the verge of becoming Hollows

(3)Literally 'White Horse'

(4) Similar to Rukia's Sode no Shirayuki's shikai form, but without the white blade and tassel


	14. Chapter 14: Konsol

I do NOT own Bleach

PLZ review -and be nice!

* * *

Everyone noticed the change as soon as Raidon and Izumi returned. They left the hall as biter rivals; now it was clear as they returned that they had found some common ground and formed an unexpected friendship.

Naomi found that they no longer sat alone –every lunchtime and dinner, they were joined by Raidon and his cluster of friends.

And even though she was grateful that there was no more discrimination based on their place of residence and she was beginning to make friends with other students, Naomi missed the time when it had just been her and her big sister.

Ever since she had met Izumi, her big sister had been her whole world. She was so powerful, the most respected fighter in Zaraki, her protector. Her reign as Hebi was nothing like the tyranny and fear that Tsuji had ruled with. Now the Hebi wasn't a crazed killer –Izumi hadn't even killed her predessor.

Naomi may be young in body and mind, but even she could understand the changes that had happened in Zaraki. Izumi not only defended her, but cared for every Zaraki as though they were all family members.

Changes had happened here as well, turning the two bitter rivals into friendly rivals, maybe into friends. It seemed to be something Izumi was good at –bringing out the good in everyone.

Izumi and Raidon did their best to keep the extent of their newly-found relationship under wraps. They still constantly tried to outdo each other in class. The only real difference was the fact that they used each other's first names.

The only time they fully dropped the façade was during their secret shikai training. After a few sessions, Etui had stopped turning up to oversee their spars, obviously trusting them not to hurt each other too severely.

It wasn't just swordplay they practiced now –they had a lot of prepping to do for the Advanced Placement exam. The third years were so far ahead of them, it was almost impossible for the two genii to catch them and learn their own course at the same time.

The two had to master the art of flash-step, a Hoho technique that wouldn't be taught to the first-years; they had to learn Kido Chants up to number 50 and Discard the chant for those below number 25 –something the other freshmen couldn't even hope to learn safely.

After a few separate sessions of studying theory for Kido and Hoho, they would book a session, an hour under each name as though they were training separately. It worked well.

The rest of the week flew him, and before long, they had the practical in the Real World.

As they gathered in front of the gates into the Academy, chatting stopped as three figures arrived. One was obviously their wispy-looking teacher.

There were mutterings at the sight of the other two: both of them were wearing shihakshou (1). The taller man had vivid crimson hair, with numerous tattoos even on his face; the other was a petite girl with her hair up in a bun and very familiar to Izumi. It was the Lieutenant of Squad 5, Momo Hinamori.

"Alright, I'm only going to say this once, so listen up!" the man shouted. The crowd fell completely quiet.

"I am Lieutenant Renji Abarai of Squad 6, and this is Squad 5's Lieutenant Momo Hinamori. We have been chosen to be your escorts on your trip to the Real World.

"In a moment, we're going to open the official Senkaimon (2). On the other side is Karukura Town, something of a spiritual hotspot. Because of the large number of high-level souls in that town, there is a high chance that Hollows will be drawn in. But you won't need to overly worry –an experienced Barrier Unit is already in position, so they'll take care of as many Hollows as possible. But keep on your toes just in case you have to deal with a Hollow.

"Once through the gate, you are free to team up or go solo as you want. Each student has a quota of five Wholes (3) to perform a Konsol on to send them to the Soul Society. Once you're done, return to the entry point.

"So, if you're ready, let's go."

As he drew his zanpukto to open the doorway, Izumi turned to Raidon.

"Isn't your father the Squad 6 Captain?" she asked. "So well do you know Lieutenant Abarai?"

"I know him pretty well," Raidon admitted. "He's always good for a laugh, at least."

She remembered the first time she had seen the noble and almost cold Byakura Kuchiki, how she had been unable to look him in the eyes. Now that she was studying at the Academy, she understood why –his spiritual pressure was so much greater than hers, it had forced her energy into submission. Somehow she got the impression that the Lieutenant was more open and friendly –how did he work with the Squad 6 Captain?

"Less talking at the back, please!" cut in their teacher's voice, and Izumi and Raidon watched as Abarai's blade stuck the air, half of it vanishing as he turned it like a key. The Senkaimon appeared out of thin air.

It was dusk in the World of the Living as the students arrived and scattered one after another. Without an order, they spread out and began to comb the town for Wholes.

Izumi was one of the solo runners; she had seen Raidon heading off in the centre of about three or four of his gang, headed to another area of the town.

The first Whole Izumi encountered was that of a businessman carrying a suitcase. He was shaking in fright, but there was no sign of a threat that Izumi could sense. Obviously the Barrier Unit had taken care of the Hollow.

Now it was time for her to put what she had learnt in the classroom into practice. She stood in front of the frightened Whole.

"Are you alright? You don't look hurt," she said. The Whole looked up at her and silently nodded.

"It's time for you to leave this world," she said, drawing her zanpukto. The Whole backed away as best he could.

"I don't want to go to Hell," the soul said, the fear clear in his voice. Izumi crouched down to his level as the butt of her dagger began to glow neon blue.

"You don't have to worry about Hell," she said soothingly. "You aren't going to that place. You're headed to the Soul Society. There, you'll be at peace forever."

She tapped the Whole on the forehead. He was surrounded by a pale blue light and pulled down. He had passed on and would find himself in the Soul Society.

With one Whole down, Izumi took off to find another soul.

The Barrier Unit was made up of members of the Advanced Sixth Year class, those selected for being the best at Kido. Their job was to maintain a safe environment for the visiting First Years, taking care of the Hollows that would be attracted from Hueco Mundo by the soul-rich centre even more now that there was a concentration of trainee Soul Reapers.

They sensed the tear in the sky the moment the Garagnta tore open. Only one group of Hollows could open something like that.

The Arrancar were back.

"Acknowledged," Renji Abarai said. "Tighten the net and escort the students back to the entrance point. I'll open the Senkaimon immediately."

Renji looked out at the town, thinking.

Why would the remains of Aizen's Arrancar army be coming back to Karakura? It was a century since the final battle there; a hundred years had passed since Sosuke Aizen, Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tousen had finally been defeated. The Arrancar were no longer able to harness the spiritual core.

Renji ran through the list of Arrancar who had survived.

The Primera Espada, Coyote Starkk, couldn't be behind this assault. He had admitted that he had only joined Aizen for security and comfort. And Lillinette, his Fraccion, was still too immature to be a real threat.

The only surviving member of the Privaron Espada, Mosqueda, had expressively stated his lack of interest in invading the Real World.

Renji wouldn't put anything past the Sexta Espada, Grimmjaw Jaegerjaquex. The teal-haired Espada was a wild card, beyond even Aizen's control. Grimmjaw had been a constant foe of Ichigo, almost killing him more than once. And he was a sore loser, pursuing Ichigo despite having severe injuries. But for some reason, he felt indebted to Ichigo for saving his life and establishing him as the King of the remnants. All that big pussy-cat wanted was to fight and to rule the Hollows. This sort of assault just wasn't Grimmjaw's style.

The only remaining Espada-class Arrancar was Neliel Tu Oderschvank; she had been loyal to Ichigo ever since they had met on the journey to Las Noches. She had saved his life when he had been targeted by the now-deceased Nnoirta Jiruga.

So who was behind this, and why?

* * *

A Hell Butterfly fluttered to Izumi as she sent her third Whole to the Soul Society. It perched on her finger to relay its message.

"All Freshmen are to abandon their Konsol practices and return immediately to the site of the Senkaimon. The area is no longer secure. Repeat, this practical is cancelled. Return immediately."

The Hell Butterfly took off again. Izumi sheathed her dagger-zanpukto, cursing bad luck. But she automatically knew that this was no joke –the Soul Reapers were serious and extremely professional

As she ran, Izumi felt the Garganta tear open the sky.

Despite everything that was happening, Izumi stopped and looked around.

A tall man with overlong silver hair and the creepiest grin fixed on his face stood just on the other side of the Garganta as it opened, beginning to leak out Menos Grande Hollows. It was only a brief glance, but Izumi recognised him instantly from Recent History 101. It was one of the traitors who had almost destroyed this very town and unbalanced everything the Soul Society stood for a century ago.

He was the former Squad 3 Captain, Gin Ichimaru.

But he was supposed to be dead. None of this made any sense.

An Adjuchas-class(4) Hollow lunged at her; Izumi recovered from the shock and turned tail. She raced for the rendezvous point, but she could sense the Hollow beast closing in fast. She raced as fast as she could, but she knew instantly that she had left it too late and she was caught.

There was only one thing she could to.

Drawing her zanpukto, she faced her enemy. The Adjuchas had been joined by others, and led what could only be described as a pack. Izumi swung her zanpukto in an arc as she called the command.

"Blaze, Fenikagi!" she barked and automatically called out a wall of fire between her and the Adjuchas as it leapt for her. The Hollow yelped as it collided with the fiery barrier.

Izumi gave it no time to recover –changing her stance and grip on the sword, she unleashed the form of a phoenix to burst out of the flames.

She heard the screech as the Adjuchas was cut deeply by fire, disintegrating on the spot.

The other pursuers stopped at the ferocity of the attack and the loss of their leader; Izumi took full advantage and ran. None of the Hollows followed her.

As Izumi reached the Senkaimon and passed through to safety, a dark-skinned figure with black dreadlocks, wearing a tattered Soul Reaper uniform stepped out of his hiding place on a nearby rooftop. He had sensed everything.

That girl had used a shikai, and been able to defeat an Adjuchas as though it was any common Hollow. She was definitely not the average student. But just who was she?

Only time would tell just how powerful she was, and whether or not she would get in the way of their plans.

* * *

(1) The Soul Reaper uniform for a member of the Court Guard Squads

(2) Official gate of entry and exit between the World of the Living and the Soul Society

(3) Souls that still have a chain on their chests

(4) The second level of Hollow evolution -previously a Gillion which consumed other Gillions.


	15. Chapter 15: End of Term

Now everybody knew about Izumi and Raidon's secret –they both had shikai. While in the World of the Living, both of them had had to call on the released form of their zanpukto or die.

Izumi was glad that Raidon had managed to 'bully' her into taking Fenikagi with her –she'd have been Hollow-chow if she hadn't.

But Izumi was having difficulty getting one image out of her head. Ichimaru's sinister grin had printed itself into her mind. It was almost enough to make her lose her focus in classes –almost, but not quite.

They had left the Real World with very little information about the situation, but rumours were all over the Seiretei within a matter of moments following their arrival, and circulating ever since. The most reliable were quickly pounced on by the gossips of the Academy, who spread them to the other students.

The blame rested firmly on the remaining Espada for the opening of the Garganta, but no-one was able to explain their motives.

Apparently the Squad 6 Captain had been briefly sent to Hueco Mundo and had come back a few hours later to report that the surviving Arrancar were denying all knowledge of the opening of the Garganta, even the unpredictable Grimmjaw.

A few weeks later, it was the winter break. Most students were looking forward to the five weeks of no lectures and relaxation, and Izumi was planning to check in on Zaraki. It would help clear her mind of what she had seen and experienced in the Real World.

Naomi was planning to stay at the Academy –apparently her gaggle of friends was staying in the otherwise empty dorm as well. As long as she was happy, Izumi was happy to leave her sister to her own devices.

Term had finished on Friday at mid-morning, and Izumi was the only one not out in the corridors or not already on the road home. She was in the room she shared with Naomi, changing out of her Academy uniform and into a yukata.

It wasn't the same one she had arrived in –she had used part of her Academy allowance (1) to buy herself and Naomi some new, smarter yukata outfits than what they had worn in Zaraki.

Her new yukata was the same base colour of light blue, but with a green flower-and-stem design. She secured it with the same red obi she had owned in Zaraki. Her sealed zanpukto sat at her waist.

When she was ready, she picked up her bookbag. It was heavy and almost splitting at the seams with thick volumes on Kido and Hoho.

Izumi was determined to master the technique of flash-step and advanced kido before the start of next term –she had no doubt that Raidon would be equally determined, if only to brag about it on their return.

She scribbled a note to her sister, wishing her a good holiday and where to find her in case anything happened and left the room.

And she knew the perfect site for training.

(1)Completely fiction for this story! All students from the poorest areas of the Rukon district are given a monthly allowance of the equivalent of £25 (haven't worked it out in Yen yet).

1


	16. Chapter 16: The Grand Hebi

I don't own Bleach

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Zaraki had barely changed. It was still the slum of slums, built from recycled and scavenged metal and cardboard, many of the homeless and extremely poor beggars hiding in corners.

Izumi had left the men who had followed and guarded her to continue her mission to lift the heavy curtain of poverty. But it looked as though they had done nothing. So what was going on?

As she made her way through the streets, she was aware of the fact that many of the beggars and homeless she passed were watching every move she made, a few even following her. But every time she turned, they ducked into the shadows.

At last she came to a well in the centre of a square to find a young lean boy struggling to lift out a heavy bucket of water. She stepped in quickly, pulling it out of the deep hole.

The boy looked terrified at first, until he seemed to recognise her.

"Izumi!" he whispered, awe in his eyes. But there was something akin to fear as he grabbed her hand, as though he was afraid she wasn't really there.

"I'm real," she assured him, a little alarmed at this behaviour. "What's been going on here?"

She looked around the empty street as she asked the question. The boy instantly took her by the hand and pulled her along the streets. As they walked, he talked.

"Things were great for a few months after you left," he said. "I was beginning to play happily in the streets with my friends. This place was looking better and better each day; most of the adults worked all day. Thieving became less and less essential, and was dealt with severely if you got caught in the act.

"But then another gang walked in, from Kushajishi. They tricked the men who protected us. Took them hostage and their leader sat back to wait for you while his men dismantled everything we had laboured to create."

Kushajishi was the 79th North Rukon District, and was the second-toughest area in North Rukon. But if they had cheated their way in and caught her men off-guard, Zaraki was in their hands.

"Their leader's been looking to challenge your right to lead this area," the boy said. Izumi frowned –once she'd dealt with this thug, he and his men were going to wish they had never stepped one foot inside Zaraki. Anyone who threatened Zaraki, threatened the place she called home, would suffer for it.

This invasion had shown flaws in Zaraki's fighting strength, flaws that she would correct during the course of her stay here.

"Where is this challenger?" she asked.

The boy led her on, and for a while there was silence.

"I knew you'd be back," the boy said suddenly. "Some of the others were beginning to doubt you, Grand Hebi, but I never did."

Since when had her title changed? The leader of Zaraki had always just been the Hebi; she might be a different type of Hebi to her predessors, but she was still just a plain Hebi.

But she didn't have time to find out the reason for the change in title right now; she had troublesome Kushjishi thugs to kick out of Zaraki first.

The boy led her to the hamlet close to her training ground. Izumi sighed –she should have guessed that the showdown would take place here.

A gang of ten men lazed around the doorway of a house. They looked like they were guarding something –probably her men.

Their leader was obvious –wearing the same blue hakama and kimono as his men, with brown hair; he was a youth, only a couple of years older than she was. On the left side of his face was a deep scar, running from hairline to jaw (AN).

"That's him," the boy said, pointing to the obvious leader. "The Oushi(1) of Kushajishi."

"Thanks," Izumi replied. As the boy ran off, she moved towards the invaders, aware that every single eye was fixed on her.

" The Oushi of Kushajishi has no place in Zaraki," she said. "Leave this place."

"And who are you to order me around?" the youth demanded, straightening from his slouched position while his men cracked their knuckles menacingly and glowered.

"I am the Hebi, or Grand Hebi, of Zaraki," Izumi calmly replied, not intimidated at all. The chatter of the men died instantly as the Oushi straightened and searched her face, looking for any trace of a lie or bluff.

Finding none, he threw his head back and let out a bark of laughter.

"It's you?" he asked. "Fine then; I accept your challenge."

"Since you're the intruder here, and I'm in charge here, I'm the one who accepts your challenge," Izumi said. She drew her zanpukto. She wasn't planning to use it at all, though –she wouldn't need to. But having it out should kick-start the fight.

"You're nothing but talk!" the Oushi snarled and lunched at the girl his captives insisted on calling the 'Grand Hebi'.

But he had made a grave error in underestimating his opponent.

He swung at her head with his staff, only to have her grab it. A brief tug-of-war began for possession of the bo staff, which culminated in her victory and his being thrown into the solid ground.

As he scrambled to his feet, cursing the pain and embarrassment, he blinked at how close she had got so fast. He froze when she placed two fingers of her right hand on his chest. She spoke softly under her breath.

"What are you doing?" he snapped.

"Bakudo number 1, Sai," she said.

His arms snapped together behind his back and he fell into an awkward position on the ground before her. He strained his neck to look up at his captor (2).

"What did you do to me?"

"I used a low-level kido binding spell to paralyze you," Izumi said calmly and matter-of-factly. "Even the lowest Soul Reaper or student could perform that against you. Just be grateful that I didn't use kido to directly attack you, or a higher level of binding."

"You never said that you were a Soul Reaper!" he pouted from the ground.

"Actually, I'm only a student," Izumi corrected him. " Anyway, you wouldn't even have tried to fight me if you'd known, would you? You'd have surrendered rather than end up in this situation."

The Oushiwas about to protest at the very idea, but then he realised that she was right. He would have surrendered and automatically retreated; he wouldn't have ended up in this rather embarrassing situation.

Izumi knelt at his head and pressed the blade of the dagger against his throat.

"Should we call an end to this?" she asked, and he nodded in agreement. He had lost the moment he had tangled with the Grand Hebi.

His limbs suddenly sprang free as Izumi released her hold on him. He took Izumi's hand as he was helped to his feet.

He silently gathered his gang and they quietly left the 80th North Rukon District –or at least tried to.

But the fight had not gone unnoticed, watched through shutters and cracks in the doors and curtains, and slowly crowds had gathered to drive them out of Zaraki. It was a non-violent action, but it hurt the Kushajishi's pride much deeper than the average physical wound or their leader's humiliating treatment at the hands of that in-training Soul Reaper.

Some of the gang almost turned back to deal a few physical blows to the crowd jeering at them. But they stopped short at the sight if Izumi and her liberated gang of Zarakis on the rooftops, following them with sharp eyes, on the lookout for any sign of violence.

The Zaraki residents stopped at the border, cheering at their newly-regained liberation and for their newly-returned Grand Hebi.

Izumi soon learnt where the new title had emerged from as a huge banquet took place in the square that night.

Apparently, Tsuji had learnt to fight so well with his dagger with only his left hand that respect had began to increase for him. And with the new respect, people had subconsciously began to call him Hebi again.

Having no desire to clash with Izumi's status, he had started referring to her as the Grand Hebi –the greater snake of the two. The name had just stuck as easily as the title of Hebi had to him.

Izumi was not really able to relax –she might have to pass on the title of Grand Hebi before she could join the Court Guard Squads. And that time was rapidly approaching.

* * *

AN: the same Bull from the Bount invasion of the Soul Society Arc. I can't remember which side of his face the scar's on –it could easily be the right.

(1) Since I'm using the Japanese for each title, Oushi means 'bull'

(2) This is the same spell Rukia used on Ichigo the first time they met


	17. Chapter 17: Fruits of Time

do not own Bleach

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Twelve months passed by. The Soul Reaper Captains dismissed the case of the Garganta opened in the World of the Living as a cold case, a one-off event that was isolated and would never occur again, after a few months of dead-ended investigation. But still Izumi had the image of Ichimaru in the back of her head. She didn't want to approach anyone with that –she wanted to gather more information first, put together a real case.

So she had focused on her studies. She had easily passed the First Year exams and cleared the Advanced Placement examination; her scores were second highest. It came as no surprise when Raidon came in Top Student of the Year. She didn't hold it against him –he had a lot more pressure on him. He would one day become Captain of Squad 6.

So they had jumped from First to Fourth Year, both securing places in the Advanced Class. Now both of them could openly wear their zanpukto now, and trained in the open rather than behind closed doors.

Both had shown tremendous capabilities –they had achieved high-level Kido spells, able to Discard the chant and keep a high level of power at half-power. Their flash-step technique and speed had improved to the point where they could remain several steps ahead of the rest of class. They could match multiple members of the Stealth Force hopefuls.

Already the eyes of the Captains were turning to the two genii as potential Ranked officers.

The relationship between the two had changed over the course of a full year. They had come from friendly rivals to close friends. Some students whispered that they were more than friends.

Maybe they were right –neither of them answered either way when directly asked. And indirect contact (spying on them) was pretty much out of the question –even some of the Fourth Years who were the elite in Hoho struggled to keep pace with them when they hit Flash-step speed.

They were always formal around each other whenever passing or speaking to one another, only using one another's first names –like any other friends.

The only one who knew the true shape of their relationship was Naomi, and she closely guarded the secret. Her sister was happy, and she was happy. Anyone who tried to disturb that happiness would have to answer to her.

Izumi had learnt that she wouldn't be expected to relinquish her Zaraki title –in fact, Zaraki should consider it an honour to one day have a Soul Reaper who was interested in their affairs. Right now, she was training in her secluded area.

One of the dummies exploded from the impact of a hado attacking spell fired without the chant. It may cut her power to half on release, but it was increasing in power. Izumi was getting more and more talented when it came to kido.

"Wow. I wouldn't like to get on the wrong side of you," said a voice from behind her, just before a pair of arms wrapped themselves around her.

She knew precisely who it was before she felt the kisses to her neck.

Their secret affair had started over the summer break, when Raidon had first located her training ground in Zaraki and seen how she was treated like a noble by the gang around her, and how she was revered by the people. He had seen the changes in the people's lives, and guessed that Izumi was behind the plan to rid the place of poverty and fear.

Training together that summer, they had (somehow) arrived at an even deeper relationship.

They knew it could never be made public –they were of different worlds. The Kuchiki clan was one of the four greatest Houses, marriages arranged at a very young age. There would be objections from the Elders of the clan if they ever learnt Raidon had taken a secret lover from one of the four poorest Rukon districts (1).

Both of them understood this, and yet they continued to see each other in secluded locations.

They never did more than hold each other and kiss in secret, but they were enjoying defying every rule in the book.

Winter ended all too quickly, and they suddenly back to the civil behaviour of any ordinary boy/girl relationship. Lectures were harder, assignments longer and looming behind every corner, leaving them with less free time and less chance of seeing each other in private.

Two weeks after the start of term, they were standing against a wall enjoying the brief warmth of the sun that marked the beginning of spring when they was students hurrying towards the Academy gates. They quickly joined the joustling crowd.

"What's going on?" Izumi asked one of the other students.

"Two of the Captains are coming to review the Fourth Year group," he said. Izumi noticed briefly that he too was a Fourth Year, a nameless face who sat near the front in each lecture.

"Two full Captains?" Izumi repeated.

A hush went through the crowd as they parted to form ordered rows that stood in line and to attention. Raidon stayed at the back while Izumi found herself in the second row.

It wasn't just Captains: two Lieutenants followed the Captains. Their armbands reflected their Squads were the 5th and 10th.

Izumi automatically recognised Lieutenant Hinamori and Captain Kurosaki without paying any attention to the armband or number on the back of Ichigo's haori.

It was the other pair that caught her eye.

The Lieutenant was a big-breasted woman with strawberry-blonde hair. She wore a pink scarf over her shoulders and a chain-like necklace.

The Captain was about half Ichigo's height, carrying his sealed zanpukto on his back. His hair was snow-white and his eyes were a catlike green. And for someone who looked so young, his eyes and face were as serious as an old man's.

As they passed by, Izumi felt his chilling aura and shivered –it was so different from Raidon's Umashiro, much more sinister and deadly. She subconsciously raised her own warm reitsu and wrapped it tightly around her like a blanket.

Ichigo noticed the subtle change and grinned to himself –from what he had heard from the Academy and just felt, she had become very capable of controlling her reitsu flux, even as a beginner.

"I hate coming to the Academy on review," Captain Hitsugaya moaned quietly to himself. The two Lieutenants were whispering together, and didn't notice his comment.

Unfortunately for him, there was another pair of ears that weren't so dismissive.

"Come on, Toshiro," Ichigo commented. "You won't have to do it again for another century if you don't want to go again. And it was you who wanted to see how good the potential new recruits are."

Toshiro ground his teeth –he missed the days when he could pull rank on the then-Substitute Soul Reaper. Of course, that had had no effect on the orange-head. Ichigo was now a Captain, and a popular one. When he had been voted in to be Squad 5 Captain, there had only been one objection and that had been from Byakura, due to Ichigo's inexperience and previous disrespect. But the difficulties and differences between the two were now a thing of the past, and the two could now work as a seamless team.

Toshiro still knew how to make his fellow Captain squirm.

"And you're only here to favour Kihara," he shot back. Maybe it wasn't the best retort, but it did hit the nail on the head.

Ever since Ichigo had found the powerful Zaraki girl and got her into the Academy, he had been keeping a close eye on her. In fact, he had only agreed to this review when he had learnt that Izumi had been transferred into the Fourth Year class.

He blushed, but before he could retort, the teacher stepped into the room to inform the two that they were ready for the Captains.

Toshiro watched Ichigo the entire lesson, and was entertained to see that he kept his distance from Izumi for the entire hour.

* * *

(1) Each compass direction point has 80 Districts, so since Zaraki is in North Rukon, it is only one of four Number 80 Districts where the standards of the living are the poorest.

AN I had to put a little romance in somewhere for Izumi-i'm just not sure yet whether to continue it or not. you choose


	18. Chapter 18: Future Prospects

I DO NOT own Bleach

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"I can't believe how short Captain Hitsugaya was!"

Whispers swept up and down the table where the Fourth Years (and one Second Year) sat. Naomi was a constant companion to her sister in a social environment, and the others had no trouble accepting Naomi and including her in their conversations.

Izumi had been filling her sister in on the details of the lesson at dinner when another Fourth Year had leant across the table and joined in. Soon enough, they were all whispering.

"They say he was a genius while he was at the Academy, that he was the childhood friend of Lieutenant Hinamori," someone said.

"Yeah, and look where she ended up –at High Traitor Aizen's side," another said. "At least Captain Kurosaki set her right."

"You probably shouldn't whisper about someone who could turn you into a popsicle with his zanpukto," Izumi commented. "Hyorimaru is supposed to be one of the most dangerous ice-based zanpukto.

"You sound worried, Izumi," Raidon said, leaning across the table. "Is it because you can barely beat Umashiro these days?"

"What are you talking about?" Izumi shot back. "The last time I checked, Fenikagi easily thawed out Umashiro. What I'm trying to say is that Hyorimaru's at a completely different level than any of our zanpukto. He belongs to a Captain."

The rest of the Fourth Years laughed at this exchange –the two genii were so closely matched, the course of their training matches was impossible to predict.

After a while, the conversation turned to the pro and cons of each Sqaud, and onto where they wanted to go on graduating.

"I'm going into the 2nd Squad when I graduate," one of the girls in the group said eventually.

"So you're willing to put your life on the line, Aza?" one of the boys said. He was one of the laziest in the class, to the point where they all wondered how he had gotten into the Advanced Class. "That's what the Stealth Force is all about."

"Of course I am!" Aza shot back. "I'm willing to make that commitment to protect the Seiretei. Could you make that sort of commitment, Ryo?"

"Probably not," Ryo admitted, raising his hands in a gesture of surrender. "I'm sorry, alright?"

"So where do you want to go, Rei?" Izumi asked another girl, a timid member of the group. Rei raised her head.

"I want to learn more about Healing Kido, so I guess Squad 4."

Another student laughed – it was Shota, one of the best when it came to Zanjutsu.

"Man, that's lame!" he said. Rei hung her head. "For me, the course ahead is crystal clear, and it's Captain Zaraki's Squad 11 for me."

"And that just proves that you're brawn and no brain," Izumi shot back, coming to Rei's defence. She allowed her Lieutenant-level reitsu to increase subtlety. Shota's laughter stopped abruptly.

"I…sorry, Rei," he hastily said, wanting to avoid a conflict with Izumi. "So you're not going to Squad 11, Izumi? Why not? I thought you were a Zaraki yourself."

"Maybe I am, but I'm not suited to join a combat unit," Izumi said. "Besides, Fenikagi's a kido-based element type. He'd just go to waste in Squad 11. Haven't you heard the whispers that they only allow melee-type zanpukto?"

"What about you, Raidon?" Aza asked, rejoining the conversation. "Where are you heading?"

"I have to join Squad 6, remember?" Raidon said, not liking the remainder about his duty to his family –he got that lecture from his father often enough.

"Oh yeah, sorry," Aza said, remembering far too late.

Naomi sat quietly, listening to the conversation around her. She was hardly aware of the world around her these days. Izumi knew what was happening –she was nearly at the stage where she could finally find and hear her zanpukto-spirit.

It was with a feeling of foreboding that she slipped into sleep in the empty room –Izumi was out late, probably still studying with the rest of the Fourth Years in the library. Apparently they had a test the following morning.

Now she knew how Izumi had felt a year ago, on the threshold of finding the name of her zanpukto.

As she slipped into dreams, she found herself on a moss-and-fern covered plateau, a wind whistling around her and through her hair. A few seconds later, a figure appeared before her where there had been nothing a moment before.

She was a towering figure, wearing a dress of the finest silk which rippled around her. A tiara adorned her pure golden hair. She had the face of something kind and yet terrifying. But she had no name.

"So I still cannot share my strength with you, Naomi?" the figure asked. That was the worst part –her zanpukto knew everything about her. And the tone made her shiver in her sleep.

The apparition faded as rapidly as it had appeared, a thread blown away on the wind.

Out of the two sisters, it was Naomi who excelled in kido in her year. But her other disciplines were poor, even with Izumi's constant training and pressure.

The two would train together, and everyone noticed a similarity between the two –both of them used relatively short weapons and moved with the same rolling grace, as though they had been trained by the same master, as though they were dancing rather than fighting. During these sessions, Izumi never used the unleashed Fenikagi against the unnamed zanpukto.

Izumi was more balanced than her sister; although she was better at Zanjutsu and Hakudo, she used Kido and Hoho as back-up styles of fighting. She was an average student in the general subjects of History, Law and Arithmetic.

She was as worthy as Raidon of her image as a genius. In a couple of years, she had almost completed a six-year programme.

Although she was unaware of it, there were great expectations from her teachers on Izumi's future, even if she lacked ambition and a clear idea of where she wanted to go after the Academy.

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Please review


	19. Chapter 19Interlude 1: One for Love

I don't own Bleach

This is IchiHime, RenRuk, HitsuHina pairings. Apologies of you don't like that. this isn't really a chapter, more of a rest to show what's going on in the rest of the Seiretei.

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4th Squad Barracks…

"I wish you would be more careful, Ichigo," sighed the chestnut-haired girl. She was the 4th Seat of her Squad, a face that Ichigo had known from before becoming a permanent resident of the Soul Society.

Orihime Inuoe had always been so important to him; he had been willing to risk everything to bring her back from Hueco Mundo, the realm of the Hollows, and had nearly died several times during his invasion of Aizen's stronghold of Las Noches.

She had grown more assertive, now possessing a scary side similar to that of her Captain, Retsu Unohana. Her zanpukto hung loosely at her side.

Sometimes, Ichigo missed the original Shun Shun Rikka with its abilities to shield, heal and attack –six fairy-like manifestations that had been embodiments of her will to regret all types of phenomena. This Shun Shun Rikka was able to shield her with its special ability; her Healing Kido was impressive, able to mend anything. She was suited to the 4th Squad –she still didn't like to hurt anyone.

"It's not my fault," Ichigo said, shrugging his top back on and his haori over it. "Kenpachi is still looking to fight me all the time."

It looked as though some things would never change –the 11th Squad Captain had always chased him around when he had been a Substitute Soul Reaper, and still did now that he was a Captain as well.

"Why can't you just walk away?" Orihime asked him. Ichigo snorted –if he could just walk away from the battle-crazy Captain, he would. But the 11th Squad Captain, who was usually as bad as he had once been at sensing and hiding his spiritual pressure, seemed to be able to zone in on him like a bloodhound on a scent.

He took Orihime's hands in his and kissed her on the mouth.

"Don't worry, Orihime," he said as he left the hospital room. "I'll be fine."

He left the Squad 4 Barracks, keeping a careful eye out for Kenpachi on his way back to his office where he still had paperwork waiting for him –one of the negative aspects of being a Court Guard Squad Captain.

Squad 5 Barracks…

The guards at the gates to the Squad 5 Barracks stood to attention when they saw him coming. He passed by, and they relaxed again.

Lieutenant Hinamori was resting her head on her arms on the desk. Ichigo frowned and looked up at the clock.

If he knew the Squad 10 Captain as well as he thought he did, Toshiro should have finished his paperwork an hour ago. And his paperwork mountain was more of a molehill. He could finish it alone within a few hours.

"Momo," he said, gently shaking her shoulder.

His Lieutenant snapped awake, eyes widening as they focused on him.

"I'm so sorry, Captain Kurosaki," she said. She fumbled to pick up another page of paperwork, but stopped when Ichjgo put his hand on the pile first.

"Momo, you've been working hard all day. I know Toshiro wants to see you, and I'm not sending you to him looking so overworked. Take the rest of the day off –I'll finish up here."

She searched his face for some trace of a joke, but found none. She was grateful as she got up from her chair.

"Thank you, Captain Kurosaki," she said, bowing and heading to the door.

"One more thing, Lieutenant," Ichigo called her back. Momo noticed the change in his tone –he was stern, not his usual light-hearted self. It was so different she shuddered.

"How many times have I told you to call me Ichigo rather than Captain Kurosaki?"

"My apologies…Ichigo," Momo whispered before leaving the room.

She felt tears in her eyes –Ichigo was completely different from her previous Captain.

When Ichigo had defeated Aizen at the entrance to the dimension where the Spirit King and his family lived, Momo had fallen into another depression, hating and blaming Ichigo for everything. But, with time and the support of her friends, she had finally accepted the reality of Aizen's betrayal, the fact that he deserved death and Ichigo's promotion to Captain.

She hadn't been the only one with doubts about Ichigo's ability to lead them. But he had proven, time and again, that he really cared for the members of his Squad. They had accepted him and, soon after, so had his Lieutenant.

Ever since he had taken Aizen's place as Captain, he had worked to repair the damage done to the Squad's reputation until it was popular with new recruits. He had been a mix of kind and stern.

Squad 10 Barracks…

Tears were still falling down her cheeks when she arrived at the Squad 10 Barracks. Ichigo had been right –Toshiro had finished his daily paperwork and dismissed Rangiku. Knowing her, she was probably drinking the sake that she had hidden away.

He was startled slightly when the door to his study opened and Momo slipped inside. He looked at her and saw the tear-tracks down her cheeks.

"Momo, what's wrong?" he asked, getting to his feet at leading his childhood friend to the couches. "Is it Ichigo?"

He silently swore that he would make the ginger-haired Captain squirm if he had upset Momo.

"No," Momo said, wiping her eyes. "I guess I'm still not over the whole Aizen incident."

Toshiro sighed –that had been a long and trying time for them all, but it had affected Momo the worst. She had always been loyal to Aizen, and that must have made it even harder on her.

They lost track of time as they sat together. Toshiro pulled Momo closer to him and she rested her head on his shoulder.

Meanwhile, back at the Squad 5 Captain's room…

"Renji!" Ichigo exclaimed as the red-headed Lieutenant barged into his office. He still had paperwork on his desk, and he did not appreciate interruptions when he was trying to work. "Haven't you learnt to knock yet?"

"Shut up!" Renji responded. He was probably the only one who still treated the Captain the same way he had when Ichigo had still been a Substitute Soul Reaper. They were still firm friends, but Ichigo had told Renji several times that during the day he had to obey the structure. Of course, that meant Renji had to show Ichigo respect during the day.

"You'd better have a great excuse!" Ichigo warned, ready to pull rank if he had to. If this was an invitation to drink sake that night, he would throw the Squad 6 Lieutenant through a window.

"I just thought you'd like to know: I've got clearance from the Captain to propose to Rukia!"

"Then go and do it!" Ichigo exploded. Renji found himself flying backwards out of the office door before he thudded into the wall of the corridor.

Ichigo sighed –he was happy for Renji and Rukia, really. The marriage should have taken place immediately after the Winter War, but Renji had been struggling to work up the courage to ask Byakura if he would allow his Lieutenant to wed his younger sister all that time.

Ichigo had managed to persuade Byakura to water down the strict laws of his clan for his sister's sake within a couple of years. But Byakura had been the first to wed under the new laws, not Renji. Raidon had been born before the expected occasion as well.

Right now, Ichigo had more pressing matters to attend to, especially since Renji hadn't even asked Rukia to marry him yet.


	20. Chapter 20: Did you hear?

I DO NOT own Bleach

review and enjoy

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"Did you hear?"

"Hear what?"

"Apparently the Squad 6 Lieutenant just asked the Squad 9's 3rd Seat to marry him."

Whispers swept through the Academy the next week. One well-connected student was very good at picking up gossip from within the walls of the Seiretei and before long the rumours had spread all over the Academy. Every single student knew at least some of the circumstances surrounding the planned wedding.

"So is it true, Raidon?" Izumi asked as they walked through the whispering crowds on the way to another practical Kido session.

"Yeah," Raidon said. "I'm surprised it took Renji this long to ask Rukia to marry him –everyone knows they've been a couple since the end of the Winter War."

"So what took so long?" Izumi wondered.

"Apparently Renji was afraid of being cut to ribbons by Senbonzakura," Raidon said. "Even I don't know what he's thinking most of the time."

Izumi knew how he felt –Captain Kuchiki had an aura around him, the feeling that you might end up electrified if you disturbed him when it really wasn't necessary.

"I heard Lieutenant Abarai visited Captain Kurosaki twice in that one day."

"Yeah, and I heard he was forcibly ejected both times, the second time through the window."

It looked as though the rumours had reached and were circulating around the Fourth Years as well as they waited for the arrival of their Kido teacher. Izumi and Raidon took their places in their respective groups.

The whispers stopped when their Kido instructor arrived and called for their attention.

"Up until now, you've been trained in mastering the kido sxpells by firing at the dummies," he began. "I've noticed that the vast majority of you can use Shakkaho and Shakatsu without the chants.

"But you always have plenty of time and little pressure under which to perform.

"That changes from here on. Kido is a technique to attack and restrain your opponents with your spiritual energy in the heat of battle, to be used alongside other techniques.

"For the rest of this class, I want you to spar and use Kido to target any openings between strikes. The number of the Kido and use of Discard is completely up to you. There is just one rule: don't aim to kill. I don't want any of you to be confined to the infirmary. Begin whenever you're ready.

An hour later, there were very few still standing. Multiple spells had blown up in their casters' faces when they had panicked; some were nursing injuries from zanpukto and others were scarred from spells that had been more powerful than they were meant to be when they had hit. Their sensei had had to call a halt to several of the more dangerous pair-ups.

Izumi and Raidon were in the minority who didn't need to visit the infirmary to be patched up or blown themselves up.

It was yet another note their sensei made for the notes that he would send out in a couple of years' time. Those two had a much better grasp of maintaining a level of energy that the others had yet to master.

It wasn't just Kido that demanded the combining of other disciplines now: Hakudo was now only supposed to be used while disarmed, against an armed opponent; Hoho was a vital discipline in both Hakudo and Zanjutsu.

Their teachers quickly noted that only the two genii and some of the more elite members of the Advance class were able to keep up with the stricter discipline and avoided walking out of the room with limps and aches.

1


	21. Chapter 21: Graduation Day

i do NOT own Bleach!

I kind of skipped two years -i was running out ideas for the Academy, anyway this isnt supposed to be an Academy based story. so its been three years since the Garganta incident, two years since the last chapter.

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Rukia could hardly believe that she had finally married her childhood friend, and that it had been two years ago that he had first asked for permission.

But right now, Renji was occupied most of the time with the list of graduating students applying to join the Squad. That was the annoying part of having a Lieutenant as a husband –he had most of the paperwork to do. Byakuya always left the selection of raw recruits to Renji –he would have turned away a lot more than Renji would.

Izumi knew very little about each of the Squads, so she went through the summaries she had made a few years ago, looking for the ones she would be best suited to. Out of the thirteen, only four had made it onto her shortlist.

This was part of the curse of being in the final year –she had to choose where she wanted to start after Graduating from the Academy.

Her eye was drawn away from the paperwork and out of the window to the sparring ground. Naomi was there, sparring with one of her own year while the rest cheered them on.

The gleaming zanpukto in her hand caught the crimson sunset. The wakizashi blade that she had carried around in Zaraki, the one she had once taken from her sister's bag, had taken on zanpukto characteristics. It was a wind-based one, called Redikaze(1). With it, Naomi could redirect and control wind pressures with each swing. It was a deceptive blade, almost strong enough to blow Fenikagi out with a single swing. And Izumi had no doubt that it was just going to get stronger.

Izumi returned to the list. Her choices had boiled down to one between Squads 5, 6, 10 and 13.

She knew Raidon was going to become a ranked Officer as soon as he entered Squad 6. Although they were secret lovers, it would probably be even harder to keep that hidden if she joined as well, and act like an ordinary Ranked officer and sub-ordinate under his father's watchful eye. So Squad 6 was out of the equation.

Ichigo and Momo were Captain and Lieutenant of Squad 5. They had been in contact with her since she had joined the Academy, and they were the ones she knew the most about. They had even offered her a Ranked Seat as soon as she joined. And while she knew them on a first-name basis, she did not want to be known as the Captain's pet, or given a high-Ranked Seat just because they had been first to find her. So Squad 5 was also out of the running.

That left only two options –one as a first choice, and one as a back-up.

Squad 13 was made up of a Captain Izumi had never seen before, no Lieutenant and two 3rd Seats who were said to be constantly tripping over each other to please their Captain.

The only other option was Squad 10. Izumi shivered each time she remembered the Captain with the chilling aura and dragon ice-based zanpukto. But it wasn't a shiver of fear –more one of respect. He had struck her as a reliable Captain, balanced by his more easy-going fun-loving Lieutenant.

If there was an easy Squad to get used to, it was probably Squad 10.

She put pen to parchment and began the task of writing out her application to become a member of Squad 10 upon graduation.

Toshiro Hitsugaya frowned as he read one of the recently arrived applications. He remembered Izumi Kihara –she had been that student in that class he had visited a couple of years ago. He was surprised –he knew that Ichigo had offered the girl the position of 8th Seat in Squad 5. Why had she not taken up that offer?

Then he smirked –he had the chance to show up Ichigo. One of the applicants Ichigo had been sure that he would get had instead applied to Squad 10 and, if Toshiro didn't want her, Squad 13.

Kihara was definitely a powerful one, with that fire zanpukto, not to mention incredibly intelligent. She was a genius, of the sort that only came along every two centuries. Her scores were only surpassed by those of Raidon Kuchiki. Her spiritual pressure was easily in the Lieutenant-class level, and he had sensed the fiery shield she had raised that time he had visited the Academy.

But all his Seats above 11th were filled. The first and only available empty Seat was 12th. So he would offer her that one.

The Graduation Ceremony was the largest event in the calendar of the Soul Reaper Academy –it was the day the Sixth Years left and joined the ranks of the Soul Reapers. It was presided over by the Head Captain who would announce the names of the students and assign them to their Squads. The Captains and Lieutenants were there as well to welcome their new recruits.

Fifty-three students, visible in their red and blue uniforms, left through the open gates and into the centre of the assembly of Soul Reapers.

As they lined up, Izumi caught a glimpse of Ichigo's orange hair to one side of the field and Toshiro's white hair on the other.

Head Captain Shigekuni Yamamoto-Genryusei stood and absolute silence fell. Stooped and leaning on a cane, his haori flung loosely over his shoulders and a long white beard, he looked as though he no longer belonged on the battlefield.

But he was scarred from hundreds of battles, and gave off an aura of choking pressure. He was the wielder of _the_ greatest and oldest zanpukto, Ryujin Jakka.

Every single student shivered in awed fear upon seeing him, the founder of the Academy and one of the longest-living Soul Reapers.

"Welcome to this event," Yamamoto began. "You have all completed your studies and are ready to take your places as fully-fledged Soul Reapers."

Ichigo always zoned out when he had to listen to this speech, but he managed to look as though he was paying full attention. He had had to listen to every word of this before he had been elevated to the vacancy of the Squad 5 Captain. He could remember the look on his fellow students' faces when they had learnt that he was really Ichigo Kurosaki, the famous Substitute Soul Reaper who had finally defeated Aizen –he had gone by a different name the whole time.

"Izumi Kihara," Yamamoto said, bringing Ichigo back to the present. He focused on Izumi, ready to greet her, and thought it strange that she was avoiding his eye.

He understood why, though, at the Head Captain's next words.

"You have completed your studies two years before the rest of the freshmen you arrived with, and with the second-highest results. You have been accepted into Squad 10, and in recognition of your excellent results have been awarded the position of 12th Seated Officer of the Squad. Congratulations are in order."

Ichigo couldn't believe his ears as he watched Izumi bow low and head towards the Squad 10 area. She was greeted by Toshiro and Rangiku, and given her new shihaksou robes.

Toshiro grinned at the sight of Ichigo's face. But somehow he got the feeling that Ichigo wasn't just about to let this slide.

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(1) Redikaze means 'Lady of the Wind'. I got the idea that fire and wind are difficult opponents, but are strongest when used together. the idea just needs to be developed in later chapters.

plz review, but be nice about it!


	22. Chapter 22: Fire and Ice

Enjoy and be nice. I promise updates will be more frequent.

I don't own Bleach or anything related to it.

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Toshiro had been right –Ichigo wasn't about to give up on recruiting Izumi to Squad 5 so easily. Ichigo had given him a dark look as he had left with his own new recruits. He was obviously seething, but didn't want to make his displeasure public.

A few days after the ceremony, Momo had turned up at the Squad 10 Barracks, looking sheepish. She had presented Toshiro a request to promote Izumi to 7th Seat in Squad 5.

"Have you taken this to Izumi yet?" Toshiro asked, handing it back to her.

"No," Momo said. She had her own instinct that was telling her that Izumi would refuse it. "I wanted your opinion first. How likely is it that she will accept?"

"I would say that she'll refuse," Toshiro said, settling back in his chair. He looked out of his window, to where Izumi was sparring with a few veterans of Squad 10. "She's not as ambitious as some of my new recruits. She's hard-working, as if she wasn't a genius. I get the feeling that she won't accept any transfer of raise in status, unless she feels she deserves it."

"Then I'd better get this over and done with," Momo sighed and left the Captain's room. She settled in a quiet room to wait while Toshiro sent an order to her to report to the room.

X

"So what did she say?" Ichigo asked the moment Momo entered his office.

"She refused, Captain," Momo replied. "She's only a new member of Squad 10, and she hasn't got a feel for them yet."

Ichigo sighed and got up. He should have guessed Izumi would refuse –she wasn't the sort who liked to depend on others. For now, he had his own recruits to attend to and train after ignoring them for the last few days.

X

Over at the Squad 10 Barracks, a crowd of veterans and new recruits had gathered to watch Izumi. For a new member fresh out of the Academy, it was obvious she was no pushover.

One of the spectators was the Captain. He was watching the fight and noticed that Izumi who could keep on equal footing with some of his best and most seasoned Seats. Of course, it was no surprise to those who had graduated with her and knew her skill the best.

He had sparred with every other new recruit –it was a good way for the Captain to analyse the recruit's strengths and weaknesses. He felt as though he was saving the best for last.

As Izumi's opponent fell back, Toshiro drew his zanpukto and used Flash-step to get behind her. A hush fell as Izumi sensed his approach and locked blades with her Captain. This promised to be quite a spectacle.

For a while, both fought with their zanpuktos sealed as they matched skill against skill. Then the Captain leapt to the roof and rasied his zanpukto into the sky. The other Squad members leapt onto the other roofs –they had a feeling they knew what was coming.

"Reign over the frozen heavens, Hyorimaru!"

The dragon formed from all the water in the atmosphere and the temperature around the arena plummeted. All of Squad 10 felt the awesome power that surrounded them –this was a rare spectacle.

"Blaze, Fenikagi!"

Izumi's fire-based phoenix shredded his more modest sealed from for the flame-enveloped sword that was his shikai form. It was a direct challenge to the ice of the Captain's zanpukto.

An ice-dragon blossomed at the tip of the Captain's zanpukto, charging straight for Izumi. It slowed upon reaching the wall of her reitsu as she made it shimmer like heat-waves of fire, but it didn't stop. As it ploughed through, Izumi manipulated the tongue of flame surrounding the blade into a whip, using it to pull it off-course.

But as one dragon fell, another three took its place. Unleashing her spiritual energy in expanding rings, Izumi was able to deflect the shikai attacks, all the time avoiding clashing with the Captain.

So far Toshiro was impressed –his other recruits had not lasted to this point. But this was more than a battle of swordplay. It was a clash between the two forces of nature that never stopped shifting the balance. Fire could melt ice, and ice could stop a fire's flames. The struggle was eternal.

And Izumi had a complete mastery of her fire-based zanpukto, and was as skilled with fire as he was with the ice. They were matched in shikai, but there was a reason that Toshiro was the Captain.

"Bunkai!" he stated and his reitsu increased tenfold. It was too much for most of his Squad, who fell to their knees, but Izumi stood firm. She knew about the Bunkai release, and knew the names of the various Captains' Bunkai forms, but seeing it was another matter. She was as thrilled as she was awestruck.

Wings formed over Hitsugaya's shoulders as he fused with his zanpukto's spirit. Twelve lotus flowers appeared around him –an indication of how long he could maintain his Bunkai form. It had increased dramatically since the end of the Winter War.

"Daiguren Hyorimaru," he proclaimed.

He could sense her spiritual pressure growing as she raised her defences –it looked as though she was preparing to make a final stand.

As he dived at Izumi, he saw flames encircle her –a last line of defence. Her stance shifted as she let go of any reliance on defence and focused all her energy for one final attack.

"Fly!" she commanded. Toshiro watched as a phoenix made out of the flames around her rose and soared at him.

It was beautiful and incredibly breath-taking for a final attack. The whole Squad felt its heat and held its collective breath at the sight. Toshiro almost didn't want to destroy it, but he had to win this fight.

The phoenix was frozen over by one of the dragons that emanated from the Captain's sword. Before Izumi had a chance to either summon a new one or recover her defence, her Captain's sword was at her throat.

The fight was over.

As Toshiro left, applause broke out. The members of Squad 10 were in awe of their new recruit, able to face off against their Captain almost as an equal. She had held off his shikai and resisted the power of his Bunkai,

And Izumi felt her awe for her new Captain turn into a great respect.


End file.
